Scientists at an Australian university hope to make the island's dwindling koala population healthier by providing a chlamydia vaccine for marsupials.
The University of the Sunshine Coast announced this month that it had started the third phase of a clinical trial for an experimental vaccine.
Chlamydia can be fatal for animals. It causes complications similar to those in humans if left untreated, including pinkeye, genital pain, discharge and cysts.
According to a 2019 study in the journal Scientific Reports, about half of the koalas tested negative for the infection in one geographic area of Australia and many of those that tested positive were also infertile.
Since 2018, Australia has lost an estimated 30 percent of its koalas due to wildfires, drought, heat wave and land clearing, the Australian Koala Foundation said last month.
The vaccine was proven to be safe in the first two phases of University of the Sunshine Coast's trials, a professor of microbiology, said in a statement, adding that the study involved around 200 wild and captive koalas.
The next phase will involve 400 koalas, including those who live in sanctuaries, as well as animals that enter the hospital for treatment, he said.
They will be divided in two groups: 200 will get the single shot vaccine and 200 are in a control group.
While this vaccination will directly benefit each of the animals, the trial will also have a focus on the protection provided by vaccination, Timms said in a statement. All koalas will be microchipped and the hospital will record any animals that return for any reason over the following 12 months. Timms said his team was working with vaccine manufacturers and government regulators to speed release of a vaccine in case the trial results are positive.
A human trial is also underway in the U.S. for a clinical vaccine for chlamydia. A Phase I test for the safety and immunogenicity of a human chlamydia vaccine, which started in 2019, is expected to be completed next year, according to the National Institutes of Health.