May 2, 2006
The C.W. Bill Young Center for Biodefense and
Emerging Infectious Diseases
(Building 33)
The National Institute of Allergy and Infectious Diseases
(NIAID), the second largest Institute at the National Institutes of Health
(NIH) in Bethesda, Maryland, plays a key role in the nation's biomedical
research program. NIAID conducts and supports research to understand,
treat, and ultimately prevent the myriad infectious, immunologic, and
allergic diseases that threaten hundreds of millions of people worldwide.
Since 2001, NIAID has greatly expanded its research programs to spearhead
the development of new and improved diagnostics, treatments, and vaccines
for emerging and re-emerging diseases caused by naturally occurring infectious
agents as well as by microbes that may be intentionally released into
a civilian population.
To help carry out that research safely, a new Integrated Research Facility
has been constructed on the NIH campus. This facility-the C.W. Bill Young
Center for Biodefense and Emerging Infectious Diseases, or Building 33-is
dedicated to NIAID's mission in emerging infectious disease research,
including the development of medical countermeasures for biodefense. The
facility will be staffed by world-class scientists in NIAID's Division
of Intramural Research.
Below are answers to some frequently asked questions about the C.W. Bill
Young Center on the NIH campus.
1. What is the C.W. Bill Young Center for Biodefense and Emerging
Infectious Diseases?
The C.W. Bill Young Center for Biodefense and Emerging Infectious Diseases
(Building 33) is an Integrated Research Facility for use by NIAID. The
84,000-net-square-foot building includes laboratories, animal care areas,
offices, and conference rooms, and has sophisticated operating systems
(for example, mechanical, air filtration, and electrical systems) required
to operate this research building safely and securely. The facility includes
laboratories and animal care areas designed to operate at either biosafety
level 2 (BSL-2) or biosafety level 3 (BSL-3).
2. Who is C.W. Bill Young?
Congressman C.W. Bill Young (R-FL), after whom this building is named,
is a long-term member of the House of Representatives and currently serves
as Chairman of the House Appropriations Subcommittee on Defense. He has
been a stalwart supporter of biomedical research and of the NIH. For more
information, see his Web site at http://www.house.gov/young/.
3. How long did it take to construct the building?
Groundbreaking for the Center occurred in November 2003, and construction
was completed in December 2005. Since that time, the facility has been
undergoing rigorous testing that is required before the facility can be
commissioned. The facility is expected to be commissioned in the Summer
of 2006.
4. How were the potential environmental impacts of the Center
assessed?
Construction of the facility followed the requirements of the National
Environmental Policy Act (NEPA).
5. How much did it cost to construct the C.W. Bill Young Center?
The total cost of the project-which includes planning, design, construction,
and related costs for the Center and the associated 1,250-car garage necessary
to replace the surface parking at the building site-was $182.6 million.
6. How many people will work in the C.W. Bill Young Center?
It is estimated that the fully operational facility will house between
225 and 275 staff. In addition to the research teams, the facility will
include administrative staff and those dedicated to non-laboratory functions
such as informatics.
7. Why does NIH need this new Integrated Research Facility?
Prior to the construction of this building, insufficient BSL-3 laboratory
space existed on the NIH campus. NIAID had 4,700 net square feet of actively
used BSL-3 laboratory space. The C.W. Bill Young Center will give NIAID
an additional 14,300 net square feet of BSL-3 laboratory space.
The new Center increases the research capacity of NIAID and enables scientists
to greatly expand the Institute's biodefense research agenda and pursue
scientific opportunities in emerging infectious diseases that have been
delayed or deferred because of the lack of adequate high-containment research
facilities. The lack of such facilities has, for example, delayed the
development of vaccines for naturally occurring diseases that threaten
the United States, such as that caused by West Nile virus.
Laboratory work involving biological agents that might be deliberately
released requires that they be handled with great care. Many of these
same agents are the causes of new or re-emerging diseases that pose significant
public health risks. The ultimate goal is to develop new diagnostics,
vaccines, and treatments against diseases caused by these infectious agents.
Such products can be developed only on a solid understanding of the basic
biology of the disease-causing agents and only with the use of specialized
biosafety labs, such as those in the C.W. Bill Young Center.
8. What types of research will be conducted in the new facility?
The proposed research projects for the BSL-3 laboratories in the Center
include expanding and consolidating the following existing NIAID research
programs:
- Respiratory viruses such as influenza and avian influenza viruses
- Respiratory bacteria such as multidrug-resistant tuberculosis and
anthrax bacteria
- Insect-borne viruses such as West Nile and dengue viruses
- Immunology of infectious diseases
- Development of vaccines for infectious diseases
The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) has categorized infectious
agents according to the containment level at which they must be handled
(http://www.bt.cdc.gov/Agent/Agentlist.asp).
Criteria for inclusion on this list includes their potential for use as
agents of bioterrorism, but many agents on this list are also classified
as agents of emerging or re-emerging diseases. Because some of the microbes
studied at NIAID are naturally newly emerging in the United States or may
jump from animals to humans, they share characteristics with potential agents
of bioterrorism.
9. Is the study of potential agents of bioterrorism new to NIAID?
NIAID scientists and clinicians have long-term experience in studying
such organisms. Even before the recent expansion of research on biodefense,
NIAID scientists had been studying organisms that cause a variety of naturally
occurring infectious diseases but that also might be deliberately released
into a population. Examples of such infectious threats include plague,
rabies, tick-borne encephalitis, West Nile virus, influenza, anthrax,
Ebola virus hemorrhagic fever, and Q fever. All of this work has been
carried out in NIAID laboratories in Maryland or Montana with required
safety measures in place. NIAID's infectious disease experts are uniquely
qualified to apply their knowledge and skills to investigate these diseases
and to develop strategies and products to counter the public health threats
they pose.
10. Why was it necessary to build this facility on the NIH campus
in Bethesda, Maryland?
Having this facility on the NIH campus takes full advantage of the rich
infrastructure, both physical and intellectual, present in NIAID's existing
intramural research program. The proximity of basic and clinical researchers
with expertise in infectious diseases provides the foundation for the
research and development program that is NIAID's mandate. It would take
at least 10 years and more than one billion dollars to duplicate this
basic and clinical infrastructure elsewhere. The NIH campus minimizes
replication of costly support services and allows use of analytic capability
in genomics, proteomics, and imaging. Furthermore, the new laboratory
helps fulfill NIAID's biodefense mandate, and makes our goals for biodefense
and emerging infectious disease research attainable within a meaningful
timeframe.
11. What is a biosafety level 3 (BSL-3) laboratory; what is a
biosafety level 2 (BSL-2) laboratory?
Presently, NIAID scientists conduct basic research on infectious agents
in BSL-2 and BSL-3 laboratories. These laboratories must undergo stringent
certification processes before they can be used. Moreover, they are regularly
inspected to assure compliance. Finally, each protocol involving use of
biological agents on the CDC list must be approved by safety officials
before work can begin.
BSL-3 laboratories are expressly designed to prevent scientists and the
environment from being exposed to microorganisms. Other laboratories of
this same type have been operating on the Bethesda campus for decades
without incident. Like these older BSL-3 laboratories, the new BSL-3 laboratories
comply with stringent federal and state regulations for construction,
use, security, inspection, and certification.
BSL-3 laboratories are designed for research on biological agents that
may cause serious or lethal infection as a result of exposure by the inhalational
route. These laboratories must include biosafety cabinets, controlled
double-door laboratory access, and special-facility engineering. Before
individuals can begin work in a BSL-3 laboratory, they are required to
undergo special training and receive preventive vaccines.
BSL-3 laboratories have several safeguards to ensure that infectious
agents are properly contained or destroyed. These measures include maintaining
the BSL-3 laboratory suites at negative air pressure relative to the surrounding
rooms so that all the airflow is directed into the suites and never out
into the surrounding rooms; microfiltration of air; air-lock buffer zones;
and long-time, high-temperature decontamination of all materials produced
in the facility.
BSL-2 laboratories are used for research on moderate-risk agents associated
with human disease. Should a person become infected, treatment is available,
and the risk of spreading the infection to others is low. Samples can
be handled at the laboratory bench if the potential for producing splashes
or aerosols is low. Scientists and technicians must wear splashshields,
face protection, gowns, and gloves while using extra care with needles
and glass, and they must decontaminate the work area and materials after
each procedure. Biosafety cabinets are used to work with concentrated
cultures or procedures that generate aerosols.
For an extensive list of safety requirements and policies, see the manual
titled Biosafety in Microbiological and Biomedical Laboratories
at http://bmbl.od.nih.gov/sect3bsl3.htm.
12. Does the C.W. Bill Young Center pose any threat to the local
community?
Building 33 was constructed to ensure that our employees and neighbors
are protected to the maximum extent that current technology allows. A
properly constructed and properly operated facility such as the C.W. Bill
Young Center poses no threat to the local community. An NIH review of
more than 3 million hours of BSL-3 and BSL 2/3 research conducted on the
NIH campus between 1982 and 2003 found no recorded incidents involving
community contamination from these laboratories.
13. What precautions are being taken to ensure the facility is
secure?
The facility is constructed within the secured perimeter of the NIH campus,
with the required setback distance from any unscreened vehicles. New lighting,
observation cameras, and card reader systems have been installed for the
entire NIH campus, and additional measures are implemented in facilities
containing BSL-3 laboratories. The laboratories requiring the highest
level of security are located in the center of the building. Multiple
levels of security devices restrict access throughout the facility.
14. What precautions will be in place for transporting infectious
materials to and from Building 33?
Specific regulations govern the transportation of biological agents to
ensure that the public, researchers, and workers in the transportation
chain are protected from exposure to any agent during the shipping process.
Infectious materials are safely transported worldwide on a daily basis
under these regulations. Protection is achieved through 1) packing requirements,
2) appropriate labeling, 3) documentation of contents, and 4) training
of personnel in the transportation chain. More information on these regulations
can be found at http://bmbl.od.nih.gov/appendc.htm,
part of the manual titled Biosafety in Microbiological and Biomedical
Laboratories.
15. What certification and oversight systems will be in place
at the Center?
NIH's Division of Safety has been closely involved in the planning and
design of the facility and will be closely involved in the operation of
the Center as well. There is a designated biosafety officer for the Center.
In addition, the Division reviews and approves all proposed protocols
and standard operating procedures for any BSL-3 laboratory on the NIH
campus prior to its use. A stringent approval process will take place
before each and any experiment can begin in the facility. NIAID also has
active in-house programs in biosafety, radiation safety, occupational
safety, and hazardous material safety.
16. If a terrorist bombing were to take place at the Center,
would the agents being studied be released into the air and prove fatal
to NIH neighbors and employees?
No, these kinds of facilities are designed specifically to eliminate
release of an agent as a result of an explosion. In the unlikely event
that terrorists attacked the C.W. Bill Young Center, the biological agents
could not survive such a blast. These agents require sensitive conditions
to thrive. For example, Mycobacterium tuberculosis cannot survive
in heat or sunlight; and most if not all viruses studied require complex
growth media and cultured mammalian cells for their growth and survival.
17. Will any of the research carried out in the Center be kept
secret?
Scientists in the Center will conduct fundamental research to facilitate
the development of diagnostics, treatments, and vaccines that will protect
people against emerging infectious threats that occur naturally or that
might be introduced intentionally into a population. Although safety concerns
will limit access to the facility, all research carried out in the facility
is anticipated to be published and openly communicated in the same manner
as other NIH research.
18. How many other research facilities in the United States have
BSL-3 laboratories?
Most institutions with infectious disease research programs have BSL-3
laboratories. According to a recent survey, about 275 facilities in the
United States have BSL-3 laboratories. See Survey for Determining
the Location, Capacity, and Status of Existing and Operational BSL-3 Laboratory
Facilities in the United States (http://www3.niaid.nih.gov/Biodefense/PDF/BSL3_survey.PDF).
19. Has there ever been an accident at a BSL-3 facility that
caused release of micro-organisms into the environment?
Numerous BSL-3 facilities have operated safely in the United States during
the past 30 years. No known accident at a BSL-3 laboratory has caused
release of a microorganism into the environment.
20. Can I visit the C.W. Bill Young Center?
The Center is expected to be officially commissioned in the Summer of
2006. Once that happens and research begins, safety and security guidelines
require that access to the facility be restricted to those individuals
authorized to enter and specifically trained to work in the facility.
Photos and video showing typical laboratories and infrastructure in the
facility are available on the NIAID Web site at http://www3.niaid.nih.gov/about/organization/dir/building33/default.htm.
NIAID is a component of the National Institutes of Health. NIAID
supports basic and applied research to prevent, diagnose and treat infectious
diseases such as HIV/AIDS and other sexually transmitted infections,
influenza, tuberculosis, malaria and illness from potential agents of
bioterrorism. NIAID also supports research on basic immunology, transplantation
and immune-related disorders, including autoimmune diseases, asthma
and allergies.
The National Institutes of Health (NIH)-The Nation's Medical
Research Agency-includes 27 Institutes and Centers and is a component
of the U. S. Department of Health and Human Services. It is the primary
federal agency for conducting and supporting basic, clinical and translational
medical research, and it investigates the causes, treatments and cures
for both common and rare diseases. For more information about NIH and
its programs, visit http://www.nih.gov.
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Last Updated July 3, 2006 (ms)
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