Saving Baby Elephants from a Lethal Virus (EEHV)
Paul D. Ling, Ph.D., a microbiologist at Baylor College of Medicine, is a leading global expert on elephant endotheliotropic herpesvirus (EEHV), a disease that is killing baby Asian elephants. Join him as he discusses the virus, key discoveries, and a treatment protocol, developed by his research team, that keeps the elephants alive.
Dr. Ling’s presentation was part of the Baylor Saturday Science Series, conducted jointly by the Houston Independent School District and Baylor College of Medicine. The video is part of an elementary-level curriculum unit on infectious disease, developed by Baylor’s Center for Educational Outreach. The Index Elephant (storybook) may be downloaded free-of-charge from the Library section of this website.
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UPDATE: On June 18, 2024, a forty-year-old elephant named Tess received the first ever dose of a new vaccine developed by Dr. Paul Ling and his colleagues at Baylor College of Medicine. The vaccine is designed to prevent the deadly elephant endotheliotropic herpesvirus (EEHV) disease described in the book The Index Elephant. Dr. Ling and other virologists worked with animal care experts and veterinarians at the Houston Zoo to develop the vaccine. The new vaccine uses mRNA technologies similar to the ones used to develop some of the most widely distributed vaccines against COVID-19. Preventing EEHV is important step in protecting elephants around the world from extinction.
https://www.houstonzoo.org/blog/houston-zoo-elephant-receives-first-ever-mrna-eehv-vaccine/
Paul Dalling Ling, Ph.D., is Associate Professor in the Department of Molecular Virology and Microbiology at Baylor College of Medicine.
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Invisible Threats
Teacher Guide
How can we protect ourselves and animals from infectious diseases? Students explore the U.S. polio epidemic, different diseases and vaccinations used to fight them, the concept of herd immunity, EEHV that can kill baby Asian elephants, and the link between climate change and disease. (8 activities)
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Saving Baby Elephants from a Lethal Virus
Slide Set
Paul D. Ling, Ph.D., a microbiologist at Baylor College of Medicine, is a leading global expert on elephant endotheliotropic herpesvirus (EEHV). This classroom slide set may be used with the video and classroom activities.
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The Index Elephant
Reading
In this storybook, young students track a mysterious illness that is killing baby Asian elephants. Students learn how doctors and scientists identified the pathogen, found a treatment, and are working to make a vaccine.
Funding
National Institute of Allergy and Infectious Diseases, NIH
Development of the Science of Infectious Diseases teaching materials and video resources was supported in part by funds from the National Institute of Allergy and Infectious Diseases, National Institutes of Health, grant numbers R25AI084826 and 4R25AI097453.