Consider the importance of BCM, Houston Zoo collaboration
By Dana Benson
Baylor College of Medicine is known for its collaborations with other medical center institutions. These efforts aimed at preventing and curing disease are vitally important, and now BCM can add another institution to its list of partners – the Houston Zoo.
The two have joined together to develop better screening and possibly a vaccine for the elephant herpesvirus. This collaboration is embraced by everyone whose heart was captured by Mac, the Houston Zoo's two-year-old Asian elephant that succumbed to the disease last November.
Impact on people
But some may wonder if this collaboration is as important as BCM's other research endeavors. In fact, it is. It's important to remember that the work of scientists at Baylor College of Medicine, the zoo and other institutions involved in the collaboration can also have significant implications on the human herpesvirus.
"By sharing expertise and resources, we hope to help elephant survival long-term and we expect it will give us additional information in studying human disease," noted Alan J. Herron, D.V.M., associate professor of pathology at BCM.
But beyond the potential impact on humans, let's not forget the role that animals play in our lives. Animals bring joy to adults and children alike. Even those of us who don't want pets in our homes find pleasure in trips to the zoo to explore the wonders of the animal kingdom.
Zoo favorite
Mac was one of the favorites at the Houston Zoo. He was born in October 2006, setting a birth record for Asian elephants at 384 pounds. Houstonians were involved in a contest to pick his name and attended celebrations for his first and second birthdays.
He was described by zoo keepers as "playful, intelligent, curious and mischievous." Mac was beloved because of those qualities and because he was, well, cute.
Mac started exhibiting symptoms of the elephant herpesvirus the morning of Nov. 9. By that evening, he was gone. Comments about the little elephant at www.houstonzoo.org/mac/ show how much he was loved and will be missed.
One person wrote, "I know what it feels like to lose a pet, but Mac was more than a pet, he was a part of everyone's family. A beloved Houstonian elephant. The crowd favorite at the zoo. He captivated Houston's attention with his charisma and bigger-than-life personality. We love you big guy, we'll never forget you!"
Profoundly grateful
Over the last two decades, the Houston Zoo has lost six elephants to the virus, which affects elephants in captivity and in the wild. The zoo currently has five elephants, including three-year old Tucker, a delightful creature who recently endeared himself to a small crowd with his tricks – a wave with his trunk, leg kicks and even a handstand.
Houstonians and other visitors to the zoo – some of who visit from around the nation and the world while seeking treatment in the Texas Medical Center – will be profoundly grateful if the work of Baylor College of Medicine doctors and their colleagues means that no more elephants suffer the same fate as little Mac.
Read more about the collaboration between Baylor College of Medicine and the Houston Zoo.
