RT Journal Article
T1 A novel antigen capture ELISA for the specific detection of IgG antibodies to elephant endotheliotropic herpes virus
A1 Van den Doel, Petra B
A1 Rodríguez Prieto, Víctor
A1 Van Rossum-Fikkert, Sarah E
A1 Schaftenaar, Willem
A1 Latimer, Erin
A1 Howard, Lauren
A1 Chapman, Sarah
A1 Masters, Nic
A1 Osterhaus, Albert D M E
A1 Ling, Paul D
A1 Dastjerdi, Akbar
A1 Martina, Byron
AB BACKGROUNDElephants are classified as critically endangered animals by the International Union for Conservation of Species (IUCN). Elephant endotheliotropic herpesvirus (EEHV) poses a large threat to breeding programs of captive Asian elephants by causing fatal haemorrhagic disease. EEHV infection is detected by PCR in samples from both clinically ill and asymptomatic elephants with an active infection, whereas latent carriers can be distinguished exclusively via serological assays. To date, identification of latent carriers has been challenging, since there are no serological assays capable of detecting seropositive elephants.RESULTSHere we describe a novel ELISA that specifically detects EEHV antibodies circulating in Asian elephant plasma/serum. Approximately 80 % of PCR positive elephants display EEHV-specific antibodies. Monitoring three Asian elephant herds from European zoos revealed that the serostatus of elephants within a herd varied from non-detectable to high titers. The antibody titers showed typical herpes-like rise-and-fall patterns in time which occur in all seropositive animals in the herd more or less simultaneously.CONCLUSIONSThis study shows that the developed ELISA is suitable to detect antibodies specific to EEHV. It allows study of EEHV seroprevalence in Asian elephants. Results confirm that EEHV prevalence among Asian elephants (whether captive-born or wild-caught) is high.
PB BioMedCentral
SN 1746-6148
YR 2015
FD 2015-08-14
LK https://hdl.handle.net/20.500.14352/24665
UL https://hdl.handle.net/20.500.14352/24665
LA eng
NO Zoological Society of London
DS Docta Complutense
RD 30 abr 2024