DOCSLIB.ORG

Elephant Endotheliotropic Herpesvirus

Total Page：16

File Type：pdf, Size：1020Kb

Download full-text PDF Read full-text
Elephant Endotheliotropic Herpesvirus European Association of Zoo and Wildlife Veterinarians - Transmissible Diseases Handbook 2019 ELEPHANT ENDOTHELIOTROPIC HERPESVIRUS V14.05 OIE BALAI EU AHL VIRUS EEHV, Proboscivirus, Herpesviridae ZOONOSIS SUSCEPTIBLE PREVENTION TRANSMISSION CLINICAL SIGNS SEVERITY TREATMENT ANIMAL GROUPS AND CONTROL Elephants Unknown Asian elephants: High mortality in Any suspected Reduce stressful from silent mostly young case should be situations in the infection, fever, Asian elephants immediately elephant group swollen temporal treated with large Two lethal cases Early detection of glands, oral and a mounts of in young African viremia through vaginal vestibular rectal fluids elephants with a weekly CBC and mucosal lesions; high suspicion of In a few cases whole blood PCR to acute mortality other illness early treatment EEHV testing in young, swollen and/or altered with famciclovir, elephants at risk blue tongue, immune status ganciclovir or edema of head acyclovir has and front legs been considered African elephant: effective nodules in the Antibiotics to lungs, skin and prevent vestibulum enterotoxaemia vaginae, may be and septicemia occasionally fatal FACT SHEET COMPILED BY LAST UPDATE Willem Schaftenaar, DVM, Veterinary Advisor for the European Elephant TAG March 2016 FACT SHEET REVIEWED BY Gary S. Hayward, Johns Hopkins School Of Medicine, 1650 Orleans Street, Baltimore, MD 21287, United States of America Lauren L. Howard, DVM, Houston Zoo, 6200 Hermann Park Dr, Houston, TX 77030, United States of America DISEASE AGENT Elephant Endotheliotropic Herpesvirus, classified as a new Proboscivirus genus. Based on viral DNA-sequences, EEHV can be divided into eight major types: a) EEHV-1A and EEHV-1B: highly associated with death in Asian elephants worldwide. b) EEHV2: associated with death in 2 African elephants c) EEHV3: associated with transient disease in 1 African elephant d) EEHV4: associated with death in 2 Asian elephants e) EEHV5: associated with death in 1 Asian elephant f) EEHV6: associated with 1 lethal case in an African elephant g) EEHV2, EEHV3, EEHV6 and EEHV7 all found in saliva, lung and skin nodules of asymptomatic African elephants SUSCEPTIBLE ANIMAL GROUPS Asian elephants (Elephas maximus): fatal hemorrhagic disease is predominantly seen in animals between 1 and 8 years, less frequently up to 10 years. Minor lesions or unapparent infection in all ages. African elephants (Loxodonta africana): rarely fatal hemorrhagic disease in animals between 1-10 years; minor lesions may be found in otherwise healthy animals. Elephant Endotheliotropic Herpesvirus - Fact Sheet V14.05 European Association of Zoo and Wildlife Veterinarians - Transmissible Diseases Handbook 2019 ZOONOTIC POTENTIAL None known. DISTRIBUTION Captive Asian elephants in zoos of North America and Europe and Asia. More than 30 fatal outbreaks amongst captive and wild Asian elephants in Southeast Asia and India have been confirmed. Two cases of lethal EEHV2 and one of lethal EEHV6 in African elephants in North America and Asia respectively. TRANSMISSION Unknown, but plausibly by cell-cell contact through saliva and trunk secretions from asymptomatic shedders. The concept that EEHV in Asian elephants originates from African elephants has been completely abandoned based on phylogenetic evidences. INCUBATION PERIOD Unknown. CLINICAL SIGNS General information: the virus may be present in many, if not all, elephants in a latent state. Sometimes a correlation between stress and cases of EEHV has been suggested, but never proven. The disease presents as an acute hemorrhagic syndrome clinically similar to disseminated intravascular collapse and shock. The organ in which the virus persists is not known. Transient shedding of the virus (trunk, conjunctiva, oral and vaginal mucosa) has been demonstrated following periods of viremia. Asian elephants: present in a latent state in most, if not all, adult elephants. Recurrent mucosal lesions in the oral cavity and vestibulum vaginae have been reported, but most such lesions carry benign elephant gamma-herpesviruses instead. Gamma-herpesviruses are also commonly shed in saliva (five major types known in both Asian and African asymptomatic elephants). Young Asian elephants (1-8 years) are susceptible to fatal hemorrhagic EEHV-associated disease, which may be from a primary exposure to the virus. Clinical signs include lethargy, inappetence, lameness, altered sleep patterns, gastrointestinal signs, leukopenia, severe thrombocytopenia, cyanosis of the tongue and edema of the head and front legs. Death may occur within a few days or even hours of the observation of clinical illness, though subclinical viremia may persist for a week or more before clinical disease is apparent. A 42-year-old female Asian elephant died with signs of hemorrhagic EEHV-disease a few months after another adult female (that originated from a herd that suffered an EEHV case) was transferred to the zoo for the purpose of companionship. Reactivation of a silent EEHV should be considered in every severely diseased elephant; this means that the presence of EEHV can be expected in organs of any dead elephant that has been ill for a certain period. When EEHV has been detected and confirmed by PCR, a q-PCR should always be performed in order to measure the viral load and confirm a primary EEHV-associated fatality or a reactivation during an already existing disease process caused by another pathogen or process. African elephants: nodules in lungs and skin (EEHV2, EEHV3, EEHV6 and EEHV7 in both) and perhaps patches in the vestibulum vaginae (more likely gamma?). Occasional rare systemic disease with EEHV2, EEHV3 or EEHV6. Lower concerns about EEHV-involvement in acute disease processes compared to in Asian elephants, though more research is needed. PATHOLOGY AND POST MORTEM FINDINGS Cyanosis of the tongue, edema of the head and front legs. Inclusion bodies in endothelial cells of the heart, tongue, liver and other organs, severe hemorrhages due to blood vessel leakage. By electron microscopy, 80-92 nm diameter viral particles present within endothelial cells. DIAGNOSIS EEHV viremia can be detected via PCR and qPCR of whole blood (EDTA or heparin) and is the gold standard for detecting clinically significant EEHV-associated disease in at risk elephants. Ideally, this should be performed every 7 to 14 days in young elephants to detect viremia early. The viral load needs to be determined in order to evaluate the involvement of EEHV in the disease process (primary infection or reactivation). Mild leukopenia (monocytopenia) and thrombocytopenia may also support early EEHV viremia. PCR and q-PCR on swabs from mucosa (trunk wash, conjunctiva, genital tract) can demonstrate the presence of the EEHV virus and confirm shedding, which can happen in asymptomatic animals and is not associated with disease, but may be important from an epidemiologic or herd evaluation standpoint. [Caution: contamination from positive controls is a serious Elephant Endotheliotropic Herpesvirus - Fact Sheet V14.05 European Association of Zoo and Wildlife Veterinarians - Transmissible Diseases Handbook 2019 concern, but can be eliminated if novel strain found by DNA sequencing]. Associated diagnostic indicators: clotting of platelets and sharp decrease of platelets, monocytopenia. NB: hematocrit is usually within normal ranges. Post-mortem: endothelial inclusion bodies. PCR and q-PCR on tissue samples (heart, muscle/tongue, liver, spleen). In African elephants also PCR and qPCR on nodules of affected tissues. Serologic tests for EEHV1-antibodies: an antibody-ELISA (glycoprotein B based) has been developed at the Erasmus Medical Centre in Rotterdam. SAMPLES REQUIRED FOR LABORATORY ANALYSIS Daily swabs from mucosal lesions, immediately stored in virus buffer medium. EDTA or Heparin blood. Tissues: heart, liver, kidney, spleen, muscle, blood vessels, tongue, umbilical cord and larger blood vessels of the placenta (fresh or frozen; for retrospective studies formalin-fixated material has also been used thought it is not preferred). TREATMENT Mucosal lesions without other signs do not seem to pose a health risk to the animal and need no treatment (non- hemorrhagic ones are most likely gamma-herpesvirus related anyway). Contact animals may be at risk during this excretion phase and should be monitored carefully. Immediately after the onset of general clinical signs of unknown etiology, blood should be checked on the presence of EEHV (PCR and q-PCR) and while still waiting for the results, EEHV-treatment should be initiated immediately. Treatment consists of administration of large amounts of rectal fluids (water), and famciclovir which should be given either orally or rectally. In the latter case, the drug should be mixed with water and flushed gently into the rectum (arm-length from the anus) after very gently cleaning and flushing of the rectum. Dose of famciclovir: 15 mg/kg BW po or rectally TID. Period of treatment depends on presence of EEHV in blood. The anti-viral drug administration should be combined with antibiotics and supportive therapy against shock. In case of thrombocytopenia, monocytopenia, or ongoing disease, plasma transfusions should be given immediately (after minor cross matching between donor and recipient). Complete treatment protocols are available at http://eehvinfo.org/ PREVENTION Acute disease is likely predominantly from primary infection in naive animals. Stress in a donor herd mate may be a factor in triggering transmission leading to clinical disease in the susceptible
Load more

Recommended publications
  • Trunkloads of Viruses
    COMMENTARY Trunkloads of Viruses Philip E. Pellett Department of Immunology and Microbiology, Wayne State University School of Medicine, Detroit, Michigan, USA Elephant populations are under intense pressure internationally from habitat destruction and poaching for ivory and meat. They also face pressure from infectious agents, including elephant endotheliotropic herpesvirus 1 (EEHV1), which kills ϳ20% of Asian elephants (Elephas maximus) born in zoos and causes disease in the wild. EEHV1 is one of at least six distinct EEHV in a phylogenetic lineage that appears to represent an ancient but newly recognized subfamily (the Deltaherpesvirinae) in the family Herpesviridae. lephant endotheliotropic herpesvirus 1 (EEHV1) causes a rap- the Herpesviridae (the current complete list of approved virus tax- Downloaded from Eidly progressing and usually fatal hemorrhagic disease that ons is available at http://ictvonline.org/). In addition, approxi- occurs in the wild in Asia and affects ϳ20% of Asian elephant mately 200 additional viruses detected using methods such as (Elephas maximus) calves born in zoos in the United States and those described above await formal consideration (V. Lacoste, Europe (1). About 60% of juvenile deaths of captive elephants are personal communication). With very few exceptions, the amino attributed to such infections. Development of control measures acid sequence of a small conserved segment of the viral DNA poly- has been hampered by the lack of systems for culture of the virus in merase (ϳ150 amino acids) is sufficient to not only reliably iden- laboratories. Its genetic study has been restricted to analysis of tify a virus as belonging to the evolutionary lineage represented by blood, trunk wash fluid, and tissue samples collected during nec- the Herpesviridae, but also their subfamily, and in most cases a http://jvi.asm.org/ ropsies.
    [Show full text]
  • Comparison of the Gene Coding Contents and Other Unusual Features of the GC-Rich and AT-Rich Branch Probosciviruses
    RESEARCH ARTICLE Ecological and Evolutionary Science crossmark Comparison of the Gene Coding Contents and Other Unusual Features of the GC-Rich and AT-Rich Branch Probosciviruses Paul D. Ling,a Simon Y. Long,b Jian-Chao Zong,b Sarah Y. Heaggans,b Xiang Qin,c Gary S. Haywardb Baylor College of Medicine, Houston, Texas, USAa; Viral Oncology Program, The Johns Hopkins School of Medicine, Baltimore, Maryland, USAb; The Human Genome Sequencing Center, Houston, Texas, USAc ABSTRACT Nearly 100 cases of lethal acute hemorrhagic disease in young Asian elephants have been reported worldwide. All tested cases contained high levels of Received 13 April 2016 Accepted 9 May elephant endotheliotropic herpesvirus (EEHV) DNA in pathological blood or tissue 2016 Published 15 June 2016 Citation Ling PD, Long SY, Zong J-C, Heaggans samples. Seven known major types of EEHVs have been partially characterized and SY, Qin X, Hayward GS. 2016. Comparison of shown to all belong to the novel Proboscivirus genus. However, the recently deter- the gene coding contents and other unusual mined 206-kb EEHV4 genome proved to represent the prototype of a GC-rich features of the GC-rich and AT-rich branch probosciviruses. mSphere 1(3):e00091-16. branch virus that is very distinct from the previously published 180-kb EEHV1A, doi:10.1128/mSphere.00091-16. EEHV1B, and EEHV5A genomes, which all fall within an alternative AT-rich branch. Editor Blossom Damania, UNC-Chapel Hill Although EEHV4 retains the large family of 7xTM and vGPCR-like genes, six are Copyright © 2016 Ling et al. This is an open- unique to either just one or the other branch.
    [Show full text]
  • From the Hallowed Halls of Herpesvirology: a Tribute To
    b1227_FM.qxd 2/15/2012 10:12 AM Page vii b1227 From the Hallowed Halls of Herpesvirology CONTENTS Preface xi Chapter 1 The HSV-2 Gene ICP10PK: A Future in the 1 Therapy of Neurodegeneration Laure Aurelian Chapter 2 What Doesn’t Belong and Why: a Saga of 23 Latency Associated Proteins Elaborated by Varicella Zoster Virus Matthew S. Walters, Christos A. Kyratsous, Christina L. Stallings, Octavian Lungu and Saul J. Silverstein Chapter 3 Selected Aspects of Herpesvirus DNA Replication, 59 Cleavage/Packaging and the Development and Use of Viral Amplicon Vectors Niza Frenkel, Ronen Borenstein and Haim Zeigerman Chapter 4 Chromatin Structure of the Herpes Simplex Virus 1 93 Genome During Lytic and Latent Infection Anna R. Cliffe and David M. Knipe Chapter 5 The Proboscivirus Genus: Hemorrhagic Disease 123 Caused by Elephant Endotheliotropic Herpesviruses Jian-Chao Zong, Erin Latimer, Sarah Y. Heaggans, Laura K. Richman and Gary S. Hayward vii b1227_FM.qxd 2/15/2012 10:12 AM Page viii b1227 From the Hallowed Halls of Herpesvirology viii Contents Chapter 6 A Molecular Mass Gradient is the Key Parameter 155 of the Genetic Code Organization Felix Filatov Chapter 7 From Latent Herpes Viruses to Persistent Bornavirus 169 Dedicated to Bernard Roizman Hanns Ludwig and Liv Bode Chapter 8 Virus Infections and Development 187 of Cervical Cancer Bodil Norrild Chapter 9 Cytomegalovirus Control of Cell Death Pathways 201 A. Louise McCormick and Edward S. Mocarski Chapter 10 Herpesviruses as Oncolytic Agents 223 Gabriella Campadelli-Fiume, Laura Menotti, Grace Zhou, Carla De Giovanni, Patrizia Nanni and Pier Luigi Lollini Chapter 11 Role of Cellular MicroRNAs During Human 251 Cytomegalovirus Infection Kavitha Dhuruvasan, Geetha Sivasubramanian and Philip E.
    [Show full text]
  • Evidence to Support Safe Return to Clinical Practice by Oral Health Professionals in Canada During the COVID-19 Pandemic: a Repo
    Evidence to support safe return to clinical practice by oral health professionals in Canada during the COVID-19 pandemic: A report prepared for the Office of the Chief Dental Officer of Canada. November 2020 update This evidence synthesis was prepared for the Office of the Chief Dental Officer, based on a comprehensive review under contract by the following: Paul Allison, Faculty of Dentistry, McGill University Raphael Freitas de Souza, Faculty of Dentistry, McGill University Lilian Aboud, Faculty of Dentistry, McGill University Martin Morris, Library, McGill University November 30th, 2020 1 Contents Page Introduction 3 Project goal and specific objectives 3 Methods used to identify and include relevant literature 4 Report structure 5 Summary of update report 5 Report results a) Which patients are at greater risk of the consequences of COVID-19 and so 7 consideration should be given to delaying elective in-person oral health care? b) What are the signs and symptoms of COVID-19 that oral health professionals 9 should screen for prior to providing in-person health care? c) What evidence exists to support patient scheduling, waiting and other non- treatment management measures for in-person oral health care? 10 d) What evidence exists to support the use of various forms of personal protective equipment (PPE) while providing in-person oral health care? 13 e) What evidence exists to support the decontamination and re-use of PPE? 15 f) What evidence exists concerning the provision of aerosol-generating 16 procedures (AGP) as part of in-person
    [Show full text]
  • Article in Press
    G Model VETMIC-4919; No. of Pages 14 ARTICLE IN PRESS Veterinary Microbiology xxx (2010) xxx-xxx Contents lists available at ScienceDirect Veterinary Microbiology ELSEVIER journal homepage: www.elsevier.com/locate/vetmic Research article Detection and evaluation of novel herpesviruses in routine and pathological samples from Asian and African elephants: Identification of two new probosciviruses (EEHV5 and EEHV6) and two new gammaherpesviruses (EGHV3B and EGHV5) Erin Latimer a, Jian-Chao Zongbl, Sarah Y. Heaggans5,2, Laura K. Richmana, Gary S. Haywardb* 'Elephant Herpesvirus Laboratory, Smithsonian National Zoological Park, 3001 Connecticut Ave., Washington, DC 20008, USA b Viral Oncology Program, Johns Hopkins School of Medicine, Baltimore, MD 21231, USA ARTICLE INFO ABSTRACT Article history: Systemic infections with elephant endotheliotropic herpesviruses (EEHV) cause a rapid Received 15 April 2010 onset acute hemorrhagic disease with an 85% mortality rate. More than 60 cases have been Received in revised form 21 May 2010 confirmed worldwide occurring predominantly in juvenile Asian elephants. Originally, three Accepted 25 May 2010 virus types EEHV1A, EEHV1B and EEHV2 were identified, all members of the Probosci virus genus within the Betaherpesvirinae. However, four elephant gammaherpesviruses (EGHV) Keywords: have also been found by DNA PCR approaches in eye and genital secretions of asymptomatic Probosciviruses Gamma herpesviruses animals, and two more versions of the probosciviruses, EEHV3 and EEHV4, were recently Hemorrhagic disease detected in acute hemorrhagic disease cases. To ask whether even more species of elephant Mixed infections herpesviruses may exist, we have developed several new diagnostic DNA PCR assays using Viral load multiple round primers in the DNA POL region. These have been used routinely for nearly three years to screen samples submitted to the Elephant Herpesvirus Laboratory for diagnosis of possible cases of EEHVdisease in blood and necropsy tissue, as well as in biopsies of other suspicious lesions or growths.
    [Show full text]
  • The-Dictionary-Of-Virology-4Th-Mahy
    The Dictionary of VIROLOGY This page intentionally left blank The Dictionary of VIROLOGY Fourth Edition Brian W.J. Mahy Division of Emerging Infections and Surveillance Services Centers for Disease Control and Prevention Atlanta, GA 30333 USA AMSTERDAM • BOSTON • HEIDELBERG • LONDON • NEW YORK • OXFORD PARIS • SAN DIEGO • SAN FRANCISCO • SINGAPORE • SYDNEY • TOKYO Academic Press is an imprint of Elsevier Academic Press is an imprint of Elsevier 30 Corporate Drive, Suite 400, Burlington, MA 01803, USA 525 B Street, Suite 1900, San Diego, California 92101-4495, USA 32 Jamestown Road, London NW1 7BY, UK Copyright © 2009 Elsevier Ltd. All rights reserved No part of this publication may be reproduced, stored in a retrieval system or trans- mitted in any form or by any means electronic, mechanical, photocopying, recording or otherwise without the prior written permission of the publisher Permissions may be sought directly from Elsevier’s Science & Technology Rights Departmentin Oxford, UK: phone (ϩ44) (0) 1865 843830; fax (ϩ44) (0) 1865 853333; email: [email protected]. Alternatively visit the Science and Technology website at www.elsevierdirect.com/rights for further information Notice No responsibility is assumed by the publisher for any injury and/or damage to persons or property as a matter of products liability, negligence or otherwise, or from any use or operation of any methods, products, instructions or ideas contained in the material herein. Because of rapid advances in the medical sciences, in particular, independent verification of diagnoses and drug dosages should be made British Library Cataloguing in Publication Data A catalogue record for this book is available from the British Library Library of Congress Cataloguing in Publication Data A catalogue record for this book is available from the Library of Congress ISBN 978-0-12-373732-8 For information on all Academic Press publications visit our website at www.elsevierdirect.com Typeset by Charon Tec Ltd., A Macmillan Company.
    [Show full text]
  • Rajarshi Kumar Gaur · Nikolay Manchev Petrov Basavaprabhu L
    Rajarshi Kumar Gaur · Nikolay Manchev Petrov Basavaprabhu L. Patil Mariya Ivanova Stoyanova Editors Plant Viruses: Evolution and Management Plant Viruses: Evolution and Management Rajarshi Kumar Gaur • Nikolay Manchev Petrov • Basavaprabhu L. Patil • M a r i y a I v a n o v a S t o y a n o v a Editors Plant Viruses: Evolution and Management Editors Rajarshi Kumar Gaur Nikolay Manchev Petrov Department of Biosciences, College Department of Plant Protection, Section of Arts, Science and Commerce of Phytopathology Mody University of Science and Institute of Soil Science, Technology Agrotechnologies and Plant Sikar , Rajasthan , India Protection “Nikola Pushkarov” Sofi a , Bulgaria Basavaprabhu L. Patil ICAR-National Research Centre on Mariya Ivanova Stoyanova Plant Biotechnology Department of Phytopathology LBS Centre, IARI Campus Institute of Soil Science, Delhi , India Agrotechnologies and Plant Protection “Nikola Pushkarov” Sofi a , Bulgaria ISBN 978-981-10-1405-5 ISBN 978-981-10-1406-2 (eBook) DOI 10.1007/978-981-10-1406-2 Library of Congress Control Number: 2016950592 © Springer Science+Business Media Singapore 2016 This work is subject to copyright. All rights are reserved by the Publisher, whether the whole or part of the material is concerned, specifi cally the rights of translation, reprinting, reuse of illustrations, recitation, broadcasting, reproduction on microfi lms or in any other physical way, and transmission or information storage and retrieval, electronic adaptation, computer software, or by similar or dissimilar methodology now known or hereafter developed. The use of general descriptive names, registered names, trademarks, service marks, etc. in this publication does not imply, even in the absence of a specifi c statement, that such names are exempt from the relevant protective laws and regulations and therefore free for general use.
    [Show full text]
  • Human Cytomegalovirus Reprograms the Expression of Host Micro-Rnas Whose Target Networks Are Required for Viral Replication: a Dissertation
    University of Massachusetts Medical School eScholarship@UMMS GSBS Dissertations and Theses Graduate School of Biomedical Sciences 2013-08-26 Human Cytomegalovirus Reprograms the Expression of Host Micro-RNAs whose Target Networks are Required for Viral Replication: A Dissertation Alexander N. Lagadinos University of Massachusetts Medical School Let us know how access to this document benefits ou.y Follow this and additional works at: https://escholarship.umassmed.edu/gsbs_diss Part of the Immunology and Infectious Disease Commons, Molecular Genetics Commons, and the Virology Commons Repository Citation Lagadinos AN. (2013). Human Cytomegalovirus Reprograms the Expression of Host Micro-RNAs whose Target Networks are Required for Viral Replication: A Dissertation. GSBS Dissertations and Theses. https://doi.org/10.13028/M2R88R. Retrieved from https://escholarship.umassmed.edu/gsbs_diss/683 This material is brought to you by eScholarship@UMMS. It has been accepted for inclusion in GSBS Dissertations and Theses by an authorized administrator of eScholarship@UMMS. For more information, please contact [email protected]. HUMAN CYTOMEGALOVIRUS REPROGRAMS THE EXPRESSION OF HOST MICRO-RNAS WHOSE TARGET NETWORKS ARE REQUIRED FOR VIRAL REPLICATION A Dissertation Presented By Alexander Nicholas Lagadinos Submitted to the Faculty of the University of Massachusetts Graduate School of Biomedical Sciences, Worcester In partial fulfillment of the requirements for the degree of DOCTOR OF PHILOSOPHY August 26th, 2013 Program in Immunology and Virology
    [Show full text]
  • (EEHV) Infection in Asian Elephants
    www.nature.com/scientificreports OPEN In vivo characterization of target cells for acute elephant endotheliotropic herpesvirus (EEHV) infection in Asian elephants (Elephas maximus) Thunyamas Guntawang1, Tidaratt Sittisak1, Saralee Srivorakul1,2, Varankpicha Kochagul2, Kornravee Photichai1,2, Chatchote Thitaram3,4, Nattawooti Sthitmatee1, Wei‑Li Hsu5 & Kidsadagon Pringproa1,3* Elephant endotheliotropic herpesvirus‑hemorrhagic disease (EEHV‑HD) is a dangerous viral infectious disease in young Asian elephants. Despite hypotheses underlying pathogenesis of the disease, it is unclear which cell types the virus targets during acute or persistent infections. This study investigated the tissues and target cells permissive for EEHV infection and replication in vivo. Rabbit polyclonal antibodies against the non‑structural proteins of EEHV, DNA polymerase (EEHV DNAPol), were generated and validated. These were used to examine EEHV infection and replication in various tissues of acute EEHV‑HD cases and compared to an EEHV‑negative control. The results indicated that viral antigens were distributed throughout the epithelia of the alimentary tract and salivary glands, endothelia and smooth muscle cells, and monocytic lineage cells of the EEHV‑infected elephants. Moreover, EEHV DNAPol proteins were also found in the bone marrow cells of the EEHV1A-HD and EEHV1A/4-HD cases. This study demonstrated for the frst time the target cells that favor in vivo EEHV replication during acute infection, providing a promising foundation for investigating EEHV propagation in vitro. Elephant endotheliotropic herpesvirus-hemorrhagic disease (EEHV-HD), caused by EEHV, is a dangerous viral hemorrhagic disease afecting Asian elephants (Elephas maximus) worldwide1–3. Clinically, the disease causes facial swelling, tongue cyanosis, acute onset of thrombocytopenia, monocytopenia and hemorrhaging in the visceral organs; this can be fatal, especially in elephants younger than 8 years old 1,4,5.
    [Show full text]
  • Wildlife Virology: Emerging Wildlife Viruses of Veterinary and Zoonotic Importance
    Wildlife Virology: Emerging Wildlife Viruses of Veterinary and Zoonotic Importance Course #: VME 6195/4906 Class periods: MWF 4:05-4:55 p.m. Class location: Veterinary Academic Building (VAB) Room V3-114 and/or Zoom Academic Term: Spring 2021 Instructor: Andrew Allison, Ph.D. Assistant Professor of Veterinary Virology Department of Comparative, Diagnostic, and Population Medicine College of Veterinary Medicine E-mail: [email protected] Office phone: 352-294-4127 Office location: Veterinary Academic Building V2-151 Office hours: Contact instructor through e-mail to set up an appointment Teaching Assistants: NA Course description: The emergence of viruses that cause disease in animals and humans is a constant threat to veterinary and public health and will continue to be for years to come. The vast majority of recently emerging viruses that have led to explosive outbreaks in humans are naturally maintained in wildlife species, such as influenza A virus (ducks and shorebirds), Ebola virus (bats), Zika virus (non-human primates), and severe acute respiratory syndrome (SARS) coronaviruses (bats). Such epidemics can have severe psychosocial impacts due to widespread morbidity and mortality in humans (and/or domestic animals in the case of epizootics), long-term regional and global economic repercussions costing billions of dollars, in addition to having adverse impacts on vulnerable wildlife populations. Wildlife Virology is a 3-credit (3 hours of lecture/week) undergraduate/graduate-level course focusing on pathogenic viruses that are naturally maintained in wildlife species which are transmissible to humans, domestic animals, and other wildlife/zoological species. In this course, we will cover a comprehensive and diverse set of RNA and DNA viruses that naturally infect free-ranging mammals, birds, reptiles, amphibians, and fish.
    [Show full text]
  • Surviving and Fatal Elephant Endotheliotropic Herpesvirus-1A
    Dastjerdi et al. BMC Veterinary Research (2016) 12:178 DOI 10.1186/s12917-016-0806-5 CASE REPORT Open Access Surviving and fatal Elephant Endotheliotropic Herpesvirus-1A infections in juvenile Asian elephants – lessons learned and recommendations on anti- herpesviral therapy Akbar Dastjerdi1*†, Katharina Seilern-Moy1,2†, Karin Darpel2, Falko Steinbach1,2 and Fieke Molenaar3 Abstract Background: Elephant Endotheliotropic Herpesviruses (EEHVs) can cause acute haemorrhagic disease in young Asian elephants (Elephas maximus) and clinical EEHV infections account for the majority of their fatalities. The anti- herpesviral drug famciclovir (FCV) has been used routinely to treat viraemic at-risk elephants, but thus far without proven efficacy. This paper presents clinical and virological investigations of two EEHV-1A infected elephants treated with FCV, and discusses anti-herpesvirus therapies of viraemic elephants. Cases presentations: Two 1.5 year old male Asian elephants at a zoological collection in the UK developed clinical EEHV-1A infections. Case 1 showed signs of myalgia for the duration of 24 hours before returning back to normal. EEHV-1A DNAemia was confirmed on the day of clinical signs and continued to be present for 18 days in total. Trunk shedding of the virus commenced 10 days after detection of initial DNAemia. Case 2 tested positive for EEHV-1A DNAemia in a routine blood screening sample in the absence of clinical signs. The blood viral load increased exponentially leading up to fatal clinical disease seven days after initial detection of DNAemia. Both calves were treated with 15 mg/kg FCV per rectum on detection of DNAemia and penciclovir, the FCV metabolite, could be detected in the blood at assumed therapeutic levels.
    [Show full text]
  • EEHV) Using a Continuous Cell Culture System
    animals Article Attempt to Isolate Elephant Endotheliotropic Herpesvirus (EEHV) Using a Continuous Cell Culture System Kornravee Photichai 1, Thunyamas Guntawang 1, Tidaratt Sittisak 1, Varankpicha Kochagul 2, Phongsakorn Chuammitri 1, Chatchote Thitaram 3 , Hathairat Thananchai 4, Teera Chewonarin 5 , Korawan Sringarm 6 and Kidsadagon Pringproa 1,7,* 1 Department of Veterinary Biosciences and Veterinary Public Health, Faculty of Veterinary Medicine, Chiang Mai University, Chiang Mai 50100, Thailand; [email protected] (K.P.); [email protected] (T.G.); [email protected] (T.S.); [email protected] (P.C.) 2 Veterinary Diagnostic Laboratory, Faculty of Veterinary Medicine, Chiang Mai University, Chiang Mai 50100, Thailand; [email protected] 3 Department of Companion Animals and Wildlife Clinics, Faculty of Veterinary Medicine, Chiang Mai University, Chiang Mai 50100, Thailand; [email protected] 4 Department of Microbiology, Faculty of Medicine, Chiang Mai University, Chiang Mai 50200, Thailand; [email protected] 5 Department of Biochemistry, Faculty of Medicine, Chiang Mai University, Chiang Mai 50200, Thailand; [email protected] 6 Department of Animal and Aquatic Sciences, Faculty of Agriculture, Chiang Mai University, Chiang Mai 50200, Thailand; [email protected] 7 Excellence Center in Veterinary Bioscience, Chiang Mai University, Chiang Mai 50100, Thailand * Correspondence: [email protected] Received: 31 October 2020; Accepted: 4 December 2020; Published: 7 December 2020 Simple Summary: Elephant endotheliotropic herpesvirus-hemorrhagic disease (EEHV-HD) is one of the most important viral infectious diseases in young Asian elephants (Elephas maximus). To date, in vitro isolation or propagation of EEHV has so far unsuccessful.
    [Show full text]