Breakthrough Vaccine Offers Hope for Elephants

Quick Smiles:

• Veterinarians have created a new vaccine to protect elephants from a deadly virus.
• Early trials revealed a strong immune response and no harmful side effects in elephants that received the vaccine.
• Experts call this a “landmark moment” for elephant conservation worldwide.

Veterinary immunologists have achieved a major step forward in protecting elephants with a new vaccine targeting elephant endotheliotropic herpesvirus (EEHV), a major threat to both wild and captive elephants.

The vaccine uses a harmless, dead version of the virus, followed by a booster shot, and has demonstrated the ability to generate robust immunity without adverse effects.

“This is a landmark moment in our work to develop safe and efficacious vaccines,” said Professor Falko Steinbach, a senior veterinary immunology professor at the University of Surrey.

Developed through collaboration among the University of Surrey, Chester Zoo, and the UK’s Animal and Plant Health Agency, the vaccine’s trial results were published in Nature Communications.

Blood test results from the study showed vaccinated elephants developed protection while unvaccinated ones did not, offering hope for saving elephant populations and supporting global conservation efforts.

“EEHV has taken the lives of so many elephants, both in human care and in the wild, but this vaccine offers hope,” shared Dr. Katie Edwards, lead conservation scientist at Chester Zoo.

Stay tuned for more uplifting stories about science making a difference for vulnerable species!

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