Australia's endangered koalas are fighting for survival. Alongside habitat loss, chlamydia disease is a leading killer and threatens their future.
Causing pain, infertility, blindness, and even death, Chlamydia infects around half of most of wild populations in Australia.
In some wild colonies, infection rates are as high as 70 percent. It can be the tipping point between survival and local extinctions.
Now, thanks to the University of the Sunshine Coast, there’s hope.
In a world first, we’ve developed a vaccine and had it approved by Australia’s veterinary medicine regulator to help protect our koalas from chlamydia and hopefully reverse its devastating spread.
Just one dose will give our koalas a fighting chance.
But the work doesn’t stop here.
World first: UniSC’s koala vaccine approved to fight deadly disease
In a world first, Australia’s veterinary medicine regulator has approved a vaccine – developed by UniSC – to protect koalas from infection and death caused by chlamydia.
Next Goal: Help us vaccinate 1000 koalas in 2026
We plan to deliver the vaccine to our most vulnerable koala populations in wildlife hospitals, veterinary clinics and field operations across the nation. And we need your help.
Every $200 raised = one koala vaccinated
Your donation will:
- Support a national vaccine campaign
- Fund vital ongoing monitoring and fieldwork
- Support research to ensure the vaccine’s long-term success
“This transcends basic research; it represents a crucial intervention to safeguard endangered species and maintain ecological balance in Australia's unique environments, serving as a model for similar conservation efforts worldwide.”
Ceva Wildlife Research Fund Director Pierre-Marie Borne
The pathway to the koala vaccine
More than 500 koalas
vaccinated in eight trials
20+ peer-reviewed
publications
15+ national and
global partners
Vaccine
approved
More than a decade of research, clinical data, gathered through multiple vaccination trials, involving hundreds of wild koalas and others in captivity and in wildlife hospitals confirmed the vaccine was safe and effective.
The result: A breakthrough using recombinant protein technology that targets key antigens of the chlamydia bacterium and offers three levels of protection:
- Reduces infection
- Prevents disease progressing
- Reverses symptoms, in some cases
Meet the team behind the breakthrough
Heading this quest to save our koalas is Professor of Microbiology Peter Timms, a world authority on chlamydial infection who has dedicated decades to solving diseases in humans and animals.
He leads a UniSC research group, with Dr Samuel Phillips, molecular biologist, to develop vaccines and new diagnostics for chlamydial disease.
They work with koala field research teams and wildlife hospitals to improve understanding of chlamydial genomics, cell biology and pathogenicity.
Until now, antibiotics were the only treatment available for infected koalas, but they can disrupt a koala’s ability to digest eucalyptus leaves – its sole source of food – leading to starvation and, in some cases, death. They often fail to prevent future infection, leaving populations vulnerable.
“We knew we needed to develop a vaccine that could be given as a single dose to both captive and wild koalas to effectively fight the curse of chlamydia." - Professor Peter Timms
Collaborative effort brings success
UniSC drew upon the expertise and resources of global and national partners to advance its vaccine, collaborating with international researchers, wildlife hospitals, veterinarians, conservationists and government agencies.
And thanks to the generosity of supporters like you – and contributions from federal, state and local government, zoos, sanctuaries, and international foundations – we’ve reached this historic point.
In the news
Ten years of research proves chlamydia vaccine can save lives of wild koalas
The largest and longest-ever survey of wild koalas has confirmed a chlamydia vaccine, developed by the University of the Sunshine Coast, can protect the animals from developing and dying from the disease.
Focus on healthier people and planet proves winning formula for UniSC
From a ‘game-changing’ koala chlamydia vaccine to a trial of a needle-free flu vaccine, the University of the Sunshine Coast’s success in research and bioinnovation has been recognised in the Life Sciences Queensland GENE Awards.
Top honour for USC professor on great quest to save koalas
UniSC professor who is leading vaccine development to safeguard Australia’s iconic koala from extinction has been named a Queensland Great.
More information
Ben Nicoll
Manager, UniSC Advancement Office
Email: bnicoll@usc.edu.au
Tel: +61 7 5430 1137
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