The Department of Defence confirmed it was advised by the US embassy on Friday that a sample of certified inactivated anthrax provided to the department's Defence Science and Technology Organisation for research purposes in 2008 may have contained some live spores.

The organisation maintains a research capability to analyse materials relevant to chemical and biological warfare agents. It imported the samples for research aimed at protecting defence personnel and the Australian community against their potential use, a spokesperson for the department said.

"Some of the samples from the 2008 shipment were used for studies to develop assay materials to detect anthrax. The work was conducted in late 2008 and 2009."

The current holdings received from the US Army research laboratories will be analysed to determine if any live spores were in the material supplied in 2008, with the results to be provided to both the Australian and US governments.

The spokesperson said there was "no risk to the general public" as anthrax infection requires direct contact with the anthrax spores and "all DSTO samples of this kind are stored in a secure and appropriate environment as required by Australian bio-safety regulations".

"Defence is confident that there have been no adverse health effects from handling of the samples."

However, the Department of Agriculture also confirmed on Saturday that a permit was issued in 2008 for the importation of live anthrax culture from the US military, but said it was not yet known whether the alleged shipment related to this permit.

"The report is currently being assessed and an investigation undertaken to determine the circumstances of its alleged arrival — including whether it did arrive and the details of the laboratory it was allegedly sent to," a spokesperson said.

"The Australian government is working with US authorities to confirm these details. Given that this relates to a potential import from 2008, this may take some time to complete."

Live anthrax cultures are able to be imported into Australia for use in research subject to strict import conditions, including the requirement to have an import permit issued by the Department of Agriculture.

The permit issued for the 2008 shipment included a requirement that the "material be held and used at a Quarantine approved premises at quarantine containment level 3," the spokesperson said.

On Friday, reports emerged that US authorities were investigating the possible mistaken shipment of the lethal bacteria dating back to 2008, some of which was sent to Australia.

It was not clear precisely when samples from the 2008 batch were sent out or where the samples were sent, other than Australia, officials said.

The reports followed an earlier discovery, confirmed by the Pentagon, that a US military facility in Utah mistakenly sent live anthrax bacteria to private laboratories in nine US states and to a US military base in South Korea.

with AFP