FATAL ENCEPHALOMYOCARDITIS VIRUS INFECTION IN AN AFRICAN SAVANNA ELEPHANT ( LOXODONTA AFRICANA ) IN A FRENCH ZOO
Abstract
A fatal case of encephalomyocarditis virus (EMCV) involving an African elephant ( Loxodonta africana ) occurred in November 2013 at the Réserve Africaine de Sigean, France. An adult female was found dead without any preliminary symptoms. Gross pathologic changes consisted of petechiae and hemorrhages on mucosae and internal organs, abundant transudate in the abdominal and pericardial cavities, and myocarditis. Histopathologic examination showed extensive degeneration and necrosis of ventricular cardiomyocytes with concurrent lymphoplasmocytic and eosinophilic infiltrate. An EMCV was isolated from several organs and considered the causative agent of the myocarditis. The same strain of virus was also isolated in rodents captured on zoo premises and considered to be the reservoir of the virus. To the authors' knowledge, this is the first EMCV case in a captive African elephant in Europe.
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EMCV outbreaks in zoos, involving a myriad of mammal species, have been reported from Australia, Asia, Africa, Europe, and North America, making the virus a worldwide problem in zoological settings.
“EMCV outbreaks in zoos – involving a myriad of mammal species such as primates, ungulates, carnivores, rodents, and marsupials – have been reported from Australia, Asia, Africa, Europe, and North America, making the virus a worldwide problem in zoological settings [16,22–29].”
From Zoological transmission of encephalomyocarditis virus in the United States: Virus evolution, host ecology, and capsid antigenicity derived from an outbreak (2026) · cites this paper as [28]
Black rats are involved in the spread of EMCV to zoo animals on multiple continents.
“The isolation of EMCV from black rats after a zoological outbreak in France, also involving the death of an elephant [28,43], demonstrates that black rats are involved in the spread of the virus to zoo animals on multiple continents.”
From Zoological transmission of encephalomyocarditis virus in the United States: Virus evolution, host ecology, and capsid antigenicity derived from an outbreak (2026) · cites this paper as [28]
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- Authors
- Lamglait, B., Joris, A., Romey, A., Bakkali-Kassimi, L., & Lemberger, K.
- Affiliations
- Virologie (FR)
- Corresponding author
- Lamglait, Benjamin
- Joris, Antoine
- Romey, Aurore
- Lemberger, Karin
- Venue
- Journal of Zoo and Wildlife Medicine
- Published
- 2015-06
- Volume
- 46
- Issue
- 2
- Pages
- 393-396
- ISSN
- 1042-7260 (ISSN-L)
- 1937-2825
- OpenAlex
- W2204322018
- Cited by
- 20
- References
- 8
- Citations by year
- 2026: 4 · 2025: 1 · 2024: 1 · 2023: 1 · 2021: 2 · 2020: 2 · 2019: 2 · 2018: 4 · 2017: 2 · 2016: 1
- FWCI
- 1.70
- Type
- journal article
- Language
- en
- Open access
- closed
- Locations
- Journal of Zoo and Wildlife Medicine (publishedVersion)
- PubMed (publishedVersion)
- BioOne Complete (BioOne) (submittedVersion)
- HAL (submittedVersion)
- Topics
- Health Sciences › Medicine › Cardiology and Cardiovascular Medicine › Viral Infections and Immunology Research
- Life Sciences › Agricultural and Biological Sciences › Animal Science and Zoology › Animal Virus Infections Studies
- Health Sciences › Medicine › Epidemiology › Virology and Viral Diseases
- Keywords
- encephalomyocarditis virus, Loxodonta africana, myocarditis, captive elephants, zoo animals, viral infection, rodent reservoirs, eosinophil infiltration
- MeSH terms
- Animals, Animals, Zoo, Elephants, Encephalomyocarditis virus, Female, France, Fatal Outcome, Cardiovirus Infections
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