Prenatal passive transfer of maternal immunity in Asian elephants (Elephas maximus)

Sally A. Nofs, Robert L. Atmar, Wendy A. Keitel, Cathleen Hanlon, Jeffrey J. Stanton, Jie Tan, Joseph P. Flanagan, Lauren Howard, Paul D. Ling

Research output: Contribution to journalArticlepeer-review

16 Scopus citations

Abstract

Asian (Elephas maximus) and African (Loxodonta africana) elephants exhibit characteristics of endotheliochorial placentation, which is common in carnivore species and is associated with modest maternal to fetal transplacental antibody transfer. However, it remains unknown whether the bulk of passive immune transfer in elephants is achieved prenatally or postnatally through ingestion of colostrum, as has been documented for horses, a species whose medical knowledgebase is often extrapolated for elephants. To address this issue, we took advantage of the fact that many zoo elephants are immunized with tetanus toxoid and/or rabies vaccines as part of their routine health care, allowing a comparison of serum antibody levels against these antigens between dams and neonates. Serum samples were collected from 3 newborn Asian elephant calves at birth (before ingestion of colostrum); 2-4 days after birth; and 2-3 months of age. The findings indicate that the newborns had anti-tetanus toxoid and anti-rabies titers that were equivalent to or higher than the titers of their dams from birth to approximately 3 months of age, suggesting that the majority of maternal-to-fetal transfer is transplacental and higher than expected based on the architecture of the Asian elephant placenta.

Original languageEnglish (US)
Pages (from-to)308-311
Number of pages4
JournalVeterinary Immunology and Immunopathology
Volume153
Issue number3-4
DOIs
StatePublished - Jun 15 2013

Keywords

  • Asian elephant
  • Endotheliochorial
  • Passive immunity
  • Rabies
  • Tetanus

ASJC Scopus subject areas

  • Immunology
  • General Veterinary

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