Source: BBC
Scientists at the University of the Sunshine Coast (UniSC) have secured regulatory approval for a single-dose vaccine to combat chlamydia in koalas, a disease devastating wild populations across eastern Australia. In some colonies, infection rates reach 70%, pushing them toward extinction. Chlamydia causes infertility, blindness, and often death, and while antibiotics are used, they can fatally disrupt gut bacteria essential for digesting eucalyptus leaves.
Over a decade of trials involving hundreds of wild koalas showed the vaccine reduced disease symptoms and mortality by at least 65%, making it the largest and longest study of its kind. Researchers hope to distribute the vaccine free of charge to wildlife hospitals, clinics, and wild populations as early as next year, but major funding is still needed due to the high costs of locating and inoculating koalas. Experts caution that habitat loss, urbanization, and natural disasters must also be addressed alongside vaccination to save the species.
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