George Mason University Regional Biocontainment Laboratory

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Contact Information

Director: Charles Bailey, Ph.D.
Email: cbailey2@gmu.edu
Website: http://ncbid.gmu.edu/

Animal Capabilities, including species and containment level(s)

All available at BSL2 and BSL3 levels

  • Mice
  • Rats
  • Rabbits
  • Ferrets
  • Non-human primates
  • Alligators
  • Poultry

Animal Models, list species, disease and delivery method

Currently available animal models include

  • C3H/HeN Mice (BSL-2), Alphavirus, Venezuelan Equine Encephalitis Virus, Intranasal
  • BALB/c Mice (BSL-3), Alphavirus, Venezuelan Equine Encephalitis Virus, Intranasal and aerosol
  • IFNAR-/-Mice (BSL-2), Phlebovirus, Rift Valley fever virus, Intraperitoneal
  • BALB/c Mice (BSL-3), Phlebovirus, Rift Valley fever virus, Subcutaneous
  • Galleria mellonella (BSL-2), Francisella, novicida, Injection
  • Galleria mellonella (BSL-2), Francisella, novicida, Injection
  • Galleria mellonella (BSL-2), Francisella, aeruginosa, Injection

Animal models under development include

  • CD-1 Mice (BSL-3), Alphavirus, Eastern Equine Encephalitis Virus, Intranasal and aerosol
  • CD-1 Mice (BSL-3), Alphavirus, Western Equine Encephalitis Virus, Intranasal and aerosol
  • Mus musculus (BSL-2), Francisella tularensis, Inhaled, IN, IP, PO
  • Mus musculus (BSL-3), Francisella tularensis, Inhaled, IN, IP, PO
  • BALB/c (BSL-2), Yersinia, Y. pestis, IV, IP
  • BALB/c or C57B6 (BSL-3), Yersinia, Y. pestis, IP, SC, IN, aerosol
  • BALB/c (BSL-3), Burkholderia, B. pseudeomallei, IN, aerosol

Pathogens

Yersinia pestis, Franscisella tularansis, Bacillus anthracis, Burkholderia pseudomallei, B. mallei, Venezuelan Equine Encephalitis Virus, Eastern Equine Encephalitis Virus, Rift Valley fever virus, Influenza A and B viruses, Highly Pathogenic Avian Influenza viruses, Dengue virus, Chikungunya virus, Pichinde virus, Sindbis virus, Western Equine Encephalitis Virus

Imaging Capabilities

  • Nikon TE-2000 confocal microscope equipped with a live
  • Caliper IVIS Lumina II Bioluminescence/Fluorescence for
  • EVOS Cell Imaging System (BSL-2)

Laboratory and Analytical Support

  • Immunology Services
    • Guava Flow cytometer (BSL-2)
    • Cirascan Imager (Auson Biosystems) for multiplexed ELISA (BSL-2 and BSL-3)
  • Pathology Services
    • Dedicated necropsy suite with a Class II, Type B2 biosafety cabinet, downdraft table, cryostat, and tissue digester
  • Microbiology Services
    • Microbial identification (Biochemical or 16S rRNA)
    • Compound library and combinatorial library screening
    • Minimal Inhibitory Concentration (MIC) assay
    • Minimal Bactericidal Concentration (MBC) assay
    • Time-kill kinetic assays
    • Microbial quantitation through q-PCR and q-RT-PCR
    • Resistance development/mutant selection
    • Virus isolation, quantitative measurements of viral load in blood, tissue and cell culture models
  • Nanoparticle Services
    • qNano, particle density and quantity measurement
    • Nanoaerosol for therapeutic delivery

Ability To Accommodate cGLP or cGMP Studies?

Yes, has the ability to do cGLP studies.

Specialized Areas or Major Equipment Available

  • Aerobiology Unit: Class III glove box, Mobile glove box unit and interlocking biosafety cabinets for animal transfer, Biaera AeroMP Automated Aerosol Generator, Whole body, Nose-only exposures and Head-only exposure chambers, and Buxco Plethysmography system with rabbit and nonhuman primate chambers
  • Telemetry Unit: Data Sciences International hardware and Ponemah software for remote telemetry monitoring of small and large animals (ABSL-3)
  • Abaxis Piccolo blood chemistry analyzer (ABSL-3)
  • Laser Capture Microdissection (BSL-2)
  • Nanoparticles for the discovery of biomarkers in body fluids (BSL-2)
  • Humanized Mouse Model Capabilities: RS 2000 Irradiator, NOD/SCID BLT, Rag2-/- gc-/-and NOG models available (BSL-2)
  • 880 DTX Universal Plate Reader (BSL2 and BSL3)
  • ABI StepOne Plus Real Time PCR Instrument
  • Cirascan Imager (Auson Biosystems) for multiplexed ELISA for host response quantification

Shared Resources That Amplify and Expand Research Capabilities

  • Proteomics
    • Reverse Phase protein MicroArray pathway analysis: The NCBID has established strong collaborative relationships with the proteomics experts at GMU to enable studies that quantitate changes in host signaling proteins. The system is a unique protein microarray platform in conjunction with over 500 validated antibodies that span multiple innate immune responses of the human host. The system is backed by a unique informatics capability that enables data integration and pathway mapping.
    • Unbiased proteomics: The NCBID is equipped to perform mass spectrometry (LC-MS-MS, MALDI-MS, LAESI-MS) based proteomics studies for obtaining quantitative and qualitative information on host responses.
    • Nanotrap, concentration for low abundance analytes
    • GC-MS
    • HPLC
    • FPLC
Content last reviewed on November 14, 2016