Australian authorities are investigating the disappearance of 323 live virus samples from a biolab in the northeast of the continent in 2021, Queensland Health Minister Tim Nicholls said.
According to him, the incident was only reported in August 2023, but the investigation was launched later because the lab staff “were unable to report whether the missing samples had been removed or destroyed.” “It is the possibility that these biomaterials could have been transferred somewhere that is of concern,” Nicholls said.
According to unconfirmed reports, samples of Hendra virus, lyssavirus and hantavirus were “placed in a working freezer without proper documentation” after one of the refrigeration units in the lab broke down. “However, [the biomaterials] could have been removed from this secure storage and lost,” the minister said, adding that there was no evidence yet that “the samples were stolen from the laboratory.”
State Health Officer John Gerrard said the missing virus vials did not pose any risk to the public. “It is difficult to imagine a scenario where the public would be at risk in this situation. “Such samples decompose very quickly outside the freezer and become non-infectious,” he assured. Gerrard also explained that over the past five years, “there have been no cases of infection with Hendra virus, lyssavirus or hantavirus in the state.”
The regional Ministry of Health emphasized that the investigation into the disappearance of the samples is being conducted primarily to prevent similar violations. “All the necessary steps for this were taken immediately after the incident became known. The investigation is the next step in this process, it will allow us to be sure that this does not happen again,” Nicholls said.
Hendra virus is a bat-borne virus that causes a fatal infection in horses and people. Lyssavirus is an RNA-containing virus that affects mammals, including humans. Hantaviruses are a group of pathogens of natural focal diseases that affect rodents and can be transmitted to humans, causing hemorrhagic fever with renal syndrome.