The complete genome of Elephant Endotheliotropic Herpesvirus 4, known as EEHV4(Baylor), has been sequenced by researchers at Baylor College of Medicine and the Johns Hopkins School of Medicine, revealing unique characteristics of this particular species of Elephant Endotheliotropic Herpesvirus – which causes a deadly disease that affects Asian elephants in both managed care and free-range environments.
The findings appear in the current edition of mSphere from the American Society of Microbiology.
“The deadly form of the disease is predominantly associated with EEHV1, but milder disease has been caused by EEHV5 or EEHV4, of which less is known,” said Dr. Paul Ling associate professor of molecular virology and microbiology at Baylor. “Here, we have determined the complete genomic DNA sequence, completed by the Human Genome Sequencing Center at Baylor, of a species of EEHV4 obtained from a trunk wash sample collected from a surviving Asian elephant calf after suffering from EEHV4.”