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    Queensland Health Forensic Scientific Services (QHFSS)

    2. Responsible public or private organization or company: 
    Queensland Department of Health (State Government)
    3. Location and postal address
    Location: 39 Kessels Road Coopers Plains QLD 4108 AUSTRALIA Postal Address: PO Box 594 Archerfield QLD 4108 AUSTRALIA
    4. Source(s) of financing of the reported activity, including indication if the activity is wholly or partly financed by the Ministry of Defence

    This facility receives no funding from the Australian Department of Defence. It receives funding from Queensland Department of Health.

    5. Number of maximum containment units5 within the research centre and/or laboratory, with an indication of their respective size (SqM):
    No containment units defined
    6. Scope and general description of activities, including type(s) of micro-organisms and/or toxins as appropriate

    The maximum containment facility at QHFSS, a state government public health virology laboratory, has both a diagnostic and a research function. The maximum containment facilities are used for the development and performance of diagnostic tests on patients with suspected exotic or endemic viral illness. This includes Henipah viruses or exotic haemorrhagic fever viruses. The only PC4 level pathogen that the laboratory has is Hendra virus, which is used for diagnostic purposes. The laboratory maintains the capacity to perform diagnostic testing for a number of exotic viral diseases including Ebola, Marburg, Lassa, Junin, Rift Valley fevers and Hantavirus among others. The reagents utilised for these purposes may consist of either inactivated diagnostic reagents, cloned viral subunits or live virus. 

    (4) For facilities with maximum containment units participating in the national biological defence research and development programme, please fill in name of facility and mark "Declared in accordance with Form A, part 2 (iii)".

    (5) In accordance with the latest edition of the WHO Laboratory Biosafety Manual, or equivalent.

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