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Researchers have made a major advance in creating a new vaccine to combat a fatal virus that targets juvenile elephants.

The inoculation, developed by an international research team, aims to prevent the severe disease caused by elephant endotheliotropic herpesvirus (EEHV), which is currently a primary cause of death in young Asian elephants.

In tests that involved adult elephants at the facility, the vaccine was found to be harmless and, crucially, to stimulate part of the immune system that helps combating viruses.

A lead scientist called this as "a landmark moment in our efforts to protect Asian elephants".

It is anticipated that the outcome of this first-of-its-kind study will pave the way to preventing the deaths of young elephants from the harmful condition caused by this virus.

Severe Consequences

EEHV has had a especially devastating impact in captive environments. At Chester Zoo alone, multiple young elephants have died to it over the past ten years. It has additionally been detected in wild elephant herds and in certain refuges and care centers.

It causes a bleeding disorder - unchecked hemorrhaging that can be fatal within 24 hours. It leads to death in more than 80% of instances in juvenile elephants.

Comprehending the Danger

Why EEHV can be so dangerous is still unknown. Many adult elephants carry the virus - seemingly with no negative impact on their well-being. But it is believed that young calves are especially vulnerable when they are being transitioned from milk, and when the immune-boosting defenses from the mother's milk decline.

At this phase, a calf's immune system is in a precarious balance and it can become overwhelmed. "It may lead to extremely serious illness," a lead conservation scientist stated.

"It does affect elephants in nature, but we don't have an precise count of how many deaths in overall it has caused. For elephants in captivity however, there have been more than 100 deaths."

Immunization Creation

The research team, led by animal health experts, created the new vaccine using a proven "framework". Basically, the core design of this vaccine is identical to one commonly employed to immunise elephants against a virus called a related virus.

The scientists incorporated this immunization framework with proteins from EEHV - non-infectious parts of the virus that the animal's defense system might recognise and respond to.

In a world-first trial, the team evaluated the new vaccine in several healthy, adult elephants at the zoo, then analysed blood tests from the innoculated animals.

Prof Steinbach stated that the results, released in a scientific journal, were "better than we had hoped for".

"The results demonstrated, unequivocally that the vaccine was effective to activate the production of T cells, that are crucial to combating viral infections."

Next Phases

The subsequent phase for the researchers is to try the vaccine in younger elephants, which are the creatures most vulnerable to serious illness.

The present immunization requires multiple shots to be given, so another aim is to work out if the equivalent protective dose can be given in a simpler way - possibly with fewer injections.

The conservation scientist clarified: "Ultimately we want to use this vaccine in the elephants that are at risk, so we need to make sure that we can get it to where it's necessary."

Prof Steinbach continued: "We believe this is a major step forward, and not necessarily solely for the elephants, but because it also shows that you can design and use vaccines to assist endangered species."