In October of 2007, the Subcommittee on Oversight and Investigations, part of the Committee on Energy and Commerce, held a hearing on government oversight of select agent laboratories. Testimony given by Dr. Richard Besser, director of an agency at the federal Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, detailed needed improvements to the inspection, documentation, and verification processes at the laboratories.
Colorado State University celebrated the opening of its $30 million Regional Biocontainment Laboratory on October 2, 2007. Sited on the Foothills Campus in Fort Collins, the 38,000-sf aerosol challenge facility will house mice for infectious disease and potential bioterror agent research. The BSL-3 laboratory features a $600,000 mass spectrometer, autoclaves, seven-layer epoxy floors, and rigorous HEPA air filtration. The project was built by a joint venture of Heath Construction with Hensel Phelps Construction.
Colorado State University has selected Heath Construction to build the $6.75 million third phase of Colorado State University's Bioenvironmental Research Building. The 21,700-sf, three-story addition to the existing Bioenvironmental Research Building is scheduled for completion in late 2008. The expansion will house research programs on infectious diseases and an array of mechanical and technical systems.
George Mason University broke ground on Sept. 25, 2007 on its Biomedical Research Laboratory on the Prince William campus in Manassas, Va. The $42 million facility is one of 13 Regional Biocontainment Laboratories (RBL) and was funded in part by a $25 million grant from the National Institutes of Health. The 53,000-sf facility will house BSL-3 laboratories for biological threat and infectious disease research and will be operated by the National Center for Biodefense and Infectious Diseases (NCBID) at George Mason University.
The University of Pittsburgh opened the $28 million Center for Vaccine Research (CVR) in late September of 2007. Located on the eighth and ninth floors of the 330,000-sf Biomedical Science Tower 3, the CVR is comprised of two facilities, the NIAID-funded Regional Biocontainment Laboratory (RBL) and the Vaccine Research Laboratory (VRL). The 27,300-sf RBL contains BSL-3 laboratories for infectious disease research.
The Department of Agriculture, Region 7, completed construction of bird flu diagnostic laboratories in the Philippines in September of 2007. The Avian Influenza Diagnostic Laboratory in Cebu City, Cagayan de Oro, and Zamboanga will be managed by the Bureau of Animal Industry (BAI) and will facilitate the detection of the AI-virus and provide immediate testing of both live and dead samples. The new diagnostic labs were funded from a grant from the Japanese Trust Fund and will comply with international biocontainment standards.
The U.S. Senate passed the Military Construction and Veterans Affairs 2008 spending bill in September of 2007. Providing over $963 million for military facility projects in Maryland, the bill will fund a two-stage expansion of the existing U.S. Army Medical Research Institute of Infectious Diseases (USAMRIID) laboratory. The completed $1-billion facility will be comprised of 1.1 million sf and will accommodate 1,300 employees. The first phase of the project will reach completion in 2012 with the second phase culminating in 2016.
The University of Maryland, College Park dedicated the 134,000-gsf Bioscience Research Building on Sept. 18, 2007. The $69 million laboratory and teaching facility contains 35 labs and accommodates approximately 30 researchers in the disciplines of pathology, neuroscience, and genomics. The building also houses two BSL-3 containment labs and the Maryland Pathogen Research Institute for the study of infectious diseases. The project began construction in 2004.
The University of Wisconsin-Madison opened the 330,000-sf Microbial Sciences Building on Sept. 14, 2007. Housing the departments of Bacteriology, Food Microbiology & Toxicology, Medical Microbiology & Immunology, and the Food Research Institute, the six-story facility features two atria to foster interaction and collaboration among an estimated 500 researchers. Designed by Plunkett Raysich Architects in Milwaukee with support from CO Architects of Los Angeles, the facility was built by general contractor C.D.
The House of Representatives Energy and Commerce Committee will hold a hearing in early October of 2007 to evaluate the safety and security issues of biocontainment and infectious disease research facilities. Prompted in part by the June 15, 2007 power failure at the CDC’s new $214 million laboratory in Atlanta, the session will investigate recent releases and incidents at high containment sites.
Proposed changes to the select agent rules 42CFR73, 7CFR331, and 9CFR121 were published in early September of 2007, reflecting the biennial review of the select agents and toxins lists. The main changes proposed are to the plant pathogen list with some movement of HHS/USDA overlap agents onto solely the HHS list. Comments on the proposed changes can be submitted on the APHIS website until 10/29/07.
The Department of Homeland Security’s Science and Technology directorate is exploring possible sites for its proposed $500 million National Bio and Agro Defense Facility (NBAF). Locations include Flora, Miss.; Kansas State University in Manhattan, Kan.; Texas Research Park in San Antonio; Umstead Research Farm, N.C.; the University of Georgia in Athens; and Plum Island, N.Y., the location of the existing BSL-3 Animal Disease Center which the NBAF will replace.
The World Health Organization's 2007 report states that infectious diseases are emerging more rapidly and spreading more quickly due to increased human mobility and travel. As the increasing risk of disease outbreaks and epidemics escalates, these health emergencies can become threats to global public health security. The World Health Report 2007 examines contemporary infectious disease trends and examines the revised International Health Regulations (2005), which came into force in 2007, as a tool for health risk identification and management.
The University of Delaware has been allocated $100,000 in federal funding to upgrade its biocontainment facilities and diagnostic avian flu laboratories. The grant is part of $450,000 that the State of Delaware will receive for avian flu preparedness and irrigation system upgrades.
The Biodesign Institute at Arizona State University has achieved a LEED Platinum rating from the U.S. Green Building Council for the Biodesign Institute Building B, which opened in 2006. Building A, which opened in 2004, received Gold level certification. The two buildings were constructed separately, but are connected on all levels by glass walkways. The Biodesign Institute facilities were designed by the architectural team of Gould Evans and Lord, Aeck & Sargent.
