Elephant Endotheliotropic Herpes Virus (EEHV)

A new study assessed the circulation of the elephant Endotheliotropic Herpesvirus Subtypes (EEHV) responsible for the recent rise in the disease, as well as its pathogenesis.
Elephant endotheliotropic herpesvirus (EEHV) is a double-stranded DNA herpesvirus.
It can cause a fatal hemorrhagic disease in young Asian elephants.

The disease has a mortality rate of up to 85%.

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GS-III :

04 October, 2019
3 Min Read

Elephant Endotheliotropic Herpes-virus (EEHV)

GS-III: Elephant Endotheliotropic Herpes-virus (EEHV)

News

A rare disease has killed five elephants in Odisha. The four deaths in Nandan Kanan Zoo are the first reported cases of EEHV-related deaths in an Indian zoo while the death in the forest too is the first known such case in the wild in India.

EEHV

EEHV is a type of herpesvirus that can cause a highly fatal haemorrhagic disease in young Asian elephants.
The disease is caused by a virus called EEHV, or elephant endotheliotropic herpesvirus.
EEHV is lethal for young elephants between the ages of one and 12.

Symptoms:

Most elephants carry just as most humans carry a cold virus.
When EEHV is triggered, the elephant dies of massive internal bleeding and symptoms which are hardly visible.
Some elephants show symptoms such as reduced appetite, nasal discharge and swollen glands, researchers say.
The disease is usually fatal, with a short course of 28-35 hours.

No cure yet:

There is no true cure for herpes-viruses in animals or in humans because herpes viruses go latent.
The disease has a short course which means that we have to take a very quick call on a suspected EEHV case and kick off treatment protocols.
This treatment is a combination of anti-viral therapy, aggressive fluid therapy (to counter haemorrhaging), immuno-stimulant drugs (selenium and Vitamins C, E), anti-pyretics and analgesics (to bring down fever).

Why it is a concern?

The death of the Chandaka forest elephant has worried officials in Odisha.
If elephants in the wild start falling prey to the virus, then treatment will be very difficult.
If a young elephant dies before reproducing, it affects the population of the species as a whole in the concerned geography.

Source: Indian Express

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