A Chlamydia vaccine is to be given to 400 koalas at the Australia Zoo Wildlife Hospital in Queensland. Australian researchers say that this vaccine could have a significant role in the long-term survival of the species.
The single-dose jab vaccine is to be given to the koalas to help them fight against Chlamydia pecorum, the sexually transmitted bacterium responsible for infertility and blindness in koalas. Moreover, Koala chlamydia can result in conjunctivitis and painful fluid-filled reproductive cysts in females. “Animals can literally cry when urinating, it hurts them that much,” said Peter Timms, a professor of microbiology at the University of the Sunshine Coast.
Timms and his colleagues, who developed the protein-based vaccine over a decade, had previously tested the vaccine on 250 koalas. He said, “We know that the vaccine is safe. It causes no problems at all.”
The researchers hope that the vaccine will improve the survival and reproduction of koalas, especially those in south-east Queensland and New South Wales where half of the koala populations are affected by chlamydia. In addition, a wider rollout to Moggill Koala Rehabilitation Centre, RSPCA Wildlife Hospital, and other wild populations in Queensland is planned within a few months.
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