A horse has been euthanized in Queensland, after confirmation that the animal was infected with Hendra virus.
Hendra is a zoonotic disease, meaning it is able to move from animals to humans.
It was originally called 'equine morbillivirus' but was renamed Hendra and became the first of a new genus, henipavirus, within the paramyxoviridae family. It is closely related to the Nipah virus, which does not exist in Australia.
The evidence to date shows it can be transmitted from flying fox to horse, from horse to horse and from horse to human.
It has been confirmed that the follow-up results were negative for all 66 people being monitored from previous Hendra virus cases in Queensland in recent months.
This case of Hendra is the 10th in Queensland this year and this was the 12th horse to be infected with the virus.
Hendra virus was first observed in 1994 but Australia's leading researchers are still quick to say there is a great deal they do not know about the disease.
Scientists identified the previously unknown virus after the death of Queensland horse trainer Vic Rail and 13 of his horses at Hendra, a Brisbane suburb, in 1994. The virus was later named for the suburb.
After extensive testing of a range of animal species, the CSIRO identified bats as its natural host.
The CSIRO is finalizing work on a vaccine for horses and expects it to be available in 2012. It has suggested the vaccine could be adapted for humans, but it would require extensive trials before release.
The Hendra virus is known to be fragile in the environment, has little chance of living in a decomposing animal and is not easily transmitted. It is easily killed by soap or detergents, heat or in a dry environment.
Close direct contact is needed for transmission to occur and it is not spread by droplets in the air like human flu or the highly contagious equine influenza.