The impact of a range of different threats has resulted in the listing of six out of seven sea turtle species on the IUCN Red List of endangered species. Disease risk analysis (DRA) tools are designed to provide objective, repeatable and documented assessment of the disease risks for a population and measures to reduce these risks through management options. To the best of our knowledge, DRAs have not previously been published for sea turtles, although disease is reported to contribute to sea turtle population decline. Here, a comprehensive list of health hazards is provided for all seven species of sea turtles. The possible risk these hazards pose to the health of sea turtles were assessed and “One Health” aspects of interacting with sea turtles were also investigated. The risk assessment was undertaken in collaboration with more than 30 experts in the field including veterinarians, microbiologists, social scientists, epidemiologists and stakeholders, in the form of two international workshops and one local workshop. The general finding of the DRA was the distinct lack of knowledge regarding a link between the presence of pathogens and diseases manifestation in sea turtles. A higher rate of disease in immunocompromised individuals was repeatedly reported and a possible link between immunosuppression and environmental contaminants as a result of anthropogenic influences was suggested. Society based conservation initiatives and as a result the cultural and social aspect of interacting with sea turtles appeared to need more attention and research. A risk management workshop was carried out to acquire the insights of local policy makers about management options for the risks relevant to Queensland and the options were evaluated considering their feasibility and effectiveness. The sea turtle DRA presented here, is a structured guide for future risk assessments to be used in specific scenarios such as translocation and head-starting programs.

49The impact of a range of different threats has resulted in the listing of six out of seven sea turtle 50 species on the IUCN Red List of endangered species. Disease risk analysis (DRA) tools are designed to 51 provide objective, repeatable and documented assessment of the disease risks for a population and 52 measures to reduce these risks through management options. To the best of our knowledge, DRAs 53 have not previously been published for sea turtles, although disease is reported to contribute to sea 54 turtle population decline. Here, a comprehensive list of health hazards is provided for all seven 55 species of sea turtles. The possible risk these hazards pose to the health of sea turtles were assessed 56 and "One Health" aspects of interacting with sea turtles were also investigated. The risk assessment 57 was undertaken in collaboration with more than 30 experts in the field including veterinarians, 58 microbiologists, social scientists, epidemiologists and stakeholders, in the form of two international 59 workshops and one local workshop. The general finding of the DRA was the distinct lack of 60 knowledge regarding a link between the presence of pathogens and diseases manifestation in sea 61 turtles. A higher rate of disease in immunocompromised individuals was repeatedly reported and a 62 possible link between immunosuppression and environmental contaminants as a result of 63 anthropogenic influences was suggested. Society based conservation initiatives and as a result the 64 cultural and social aspect of interacting with sea turtles appeared to need more attention and 65 research. A risk management workshop was carried out to acquire the insights of local policy makers 66 about management options for the risks relevant to Queensland and the options were evaluated 67 considering their feasibility and effectiveness. The sea turtle DRA presented here, is a structured 68 guide for future risk assessments to be used in specific scenarios such as translocation and head-69 starting programs. 70 71 72 73 3 74 101 Species Survival Commission in 2014. The manual addresses different scenarios for endangered 102 species and translocating them for conservation purposes and enables the pros and cons of these 103actions to be thoroughly investigated (11). In order to accommodate the unique biology of sea 104 turtles, the DRA process as described in this manual requires certain modifications to realistically 105 articulate with situations such as translocating animals or investigating the risks of disease for a 106 population in its normal habitat. A 2015 study describes a systematic approach to investigate 107 disease-related population decline without confining the assessment to a particular scenario or 108 location (6). This method is a modified version of a DRA based on epidemiological principles (6) for 109 any declining wildlife population. A successful DRA considers the study population in the context of 110 the environment. 111In the 1960's, Calvin Schwabe coined the term "One Medicine" which then extended ...

Fibropapillomatosis (FP) is characterized by cutaneous tumours and is associated with Chelonid herpesvirus 5 (ChHV5), an alphaherpesvirus from the family Herpesviridae. Here, we provide the first evidence of ChHV5-associated FP in endangered Green turtles (Chelonia mydas) from Sabah, which is located at the northern region of Malaysian Borneo. The aims of this study were firstly, to determine the presence of ChHV5 in both tumour exhibiting and tumour-free turtles using molecular techniques and secondly, to determine the phylogeography of ChHV5 in Sabah. We also aim to provide evidence of ChHV5 infection through histopathological examinations. A total of 115 Green turtles were sampled from Mabul Island, Sabah. We observed three Green turtles that exhibited FP tumours and were positive for ChHV5.In addition, six clinically healthy turtles were also positive for the virus based on Polymerase Chain Reaction of three viral genes (Capsid protein gene UL18, Glycoprotein H gene UL22 and Glycoprotein B gene UL27). The prevalence of the ChHV5 was 5.22% in asymptomatic Green turtles. Epidermal intranuclear inclusions were identified in tumour lesions upon histopathological examination. Thus, the emergence of ChHV5 in Green turtle in the waters of Sabah could indicate a possible threat to sea turtle populations in the future and requires further monitoring of the populations along the Bornean coast.

Fibropapillomatosis (FP) of sea turtles is characterised by cutaneous tumours and is associated with Chelonid herpesvirus 5 (ChHV5), an alphaherpesvirus from the family Herpesviridae. Here, we provide the first evidence of ChHV5-associated FP in endangered Green turtles (Chelonia mydas) from Sabah, which is located at the northern region of Malaysian Borneo. The aims of our study were firstly, to determine the presence of ChHV5 in both tumour exhibiting and tumour-free turtles using molecular techniques and secondly, to determine the phylogeography of ChHV5 in Sabah. We also aim to provide evidence of ChHV5 infection through histopathological examinations. A total of 115 Green turtles were sampled from Mabul Island, Sabah. We observed three Green turtles that exhibited FP tumours and were positive for ChHV5. In addition, six clinically healthy turtles (with no presence of tumours) were also positive for the virus based on Polymerase Chain Reaction of three viral genes (Capsid protein gene UL18, Glycoprotein H gene UL22, and Glycoprotein B gene UL27). The prevalence of the ChHV5 was 5.22% in asymptomatic Green turtles. Epidermal intranuclear inclusions were identified in tumour lesions upon histopathological examination. In addition, phylogenetic analyses of the UL18, UL22, UL27, and UL30 gene sequences showed a worldwide distribution of the ChHV5 strain with no clear distinction based on geographical location suggesting an interoceanic connection and movement of the sea turtles. Thus, the emergence of ChHV5 in Green turtles in the waters of Sabah could indicate a possible threat to sea turtle populations in the future and requires further monitoring of the populations along the Bornean coast.