Elephant herpes: Super-shedders endanger young animals

(University of Zurich) Elephants have species-specific herpesviruses, which frequently lead to death, especially in the young. Researchers at the University of Zurich have traced the infection transmission route of different elephant calves, recognizing the following in the process: Some animals do not shed the virus or shed it only rarely, while other do so frequently. In the process, these super-shedders and their offspring are only mildly affected by the virus, but endanger the juveniles of non-shedders in particular.

Source: EurekAlert! - Infectious and Emerging Diseases - May 3, 2017 Category: Infectious Diseases Source Type: news