In an alarming revelation that has shaken the international scientific and health field, the Queensland Health MinisterTim Nicholls, revealed this Monday, December 9 that 323 live virus samples – including Hendra virus, lyssavirus and hantavirus – disappeared in 2021 in a “serious breach of biosafety protocols.”
As detailed Newsweekthe Australian authorities have not yet been able to clarify the destination of the samples, but the situation is serious. Yes ok They have publicly ruled out that the bottles were stolen for malicious purposes. or that can be used as biological weaponsthe revelation has highlighted the vulnerabilities in the hazardous materials control systems and has raised alarms about possible failures in the surveillance of these high-level biosafety laboratories.
This incident, which involves one of the most serious virus leaks in recent yearshas unleashed a series of investigations and stricter security measures to prevent something similar from happening again. Authorities continue to seek answers about how 323 vials containing dangerous viruses disappeared, and what failures allowed this event to go unresolved for almost two years.
In 2021, 323 vials containing samples of three viruses highly dangerous were stored in the laboratory Public Health Virology Laboratory of Queensland. Among the missing pathogens were almost 100 vials of Hendra viruswhich can cause a high mortality rate in humans (57%), as well as two vials with hantavirus (which causes hantavirus pulmonary syndrome, with a mortality of around 38%) and 223 samples of lyssavirusa virus similar to rabies with a mortality rate close to 100% in untreated cases.
Although the incident occurred in 2021, it was only now that authorities officially revealed the disappearance of the samples. The reason for the delay in confirmation was due to a delay in authorization to open the freezers in which the samples were stored, which delayed the discovery of the incident.
He Queensland Ministry of Healthheaded by Tim Nicholls, detailed that the samples were stored in a freezer that apparently suffered a technical failure. As a result, the samples were transferred to another freezer, but without completing the corresponding documentation. This administrative failure and the lack of control over the transfer of the bottles contributed to the loss of the samples, which It is not yet known whether they were destroyed or simply disappeared without a trace.
Despite ongoing investigations, Australian authorities have noted that there is no evidence that the samples have been stolen for malicious purposes. He Queensland Chief Health OfficerJohn Gerrard, stated: “There is no evidence that these viruses have been removed from the laboratory with the aim of being used in an act of biological terrorism”. He also ruled out that the samples were used as biological weapons, stating that “the process of manipulation and genetic modification to turn a virus into a weapon is extremely complex and could not have been carried out by amateurs.”
Regarding community safety, authorities have stressed that there is no indication that the public has been at risk, as The viruses in question would have quickly lost their infectivity outside of a freezing environment. Gerrard said it is likely that the samples were destroyed by autoclavea standard process in laboratories to disinfect biological materials, but which was not properly recorded.
The Queensland government has also indicated that no human cases of Hendra or lyssavirus in the region in the last five years, and that no case of hantavirus in humans has been recorded in Australia.
In response to the serious incident, Queensland authorities have launched an official investigation under the direction of Judge Martin Daubney and the biosafety expert Dr. Julian Druce. The investigation will seek to determine how the leak occurred, what failures occurred in the security protocols and what measures should be taken to prevent similar situations from being repeated in the future.
Furthermore, since the disappearance of the viruses became known, the government has implemented a series of corrective measures, including the additional staff training to ensure compliance with safety regulations and a audit of all permissions and protocols related to the storage of hazardous materials.
