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News
- The Regional
Biocontainment Laboratory
NIH News Release
National Institute of Allergy and Infectious Diseases
Tuesday, Sept. 30, 2003
| FOR
IMMEDIATE RELEASE |
Contact:
NIAID Press Office |
| Tuesday,
Sept. 30, 2003 |
(301) 402-1663 |
| |
niaidnews@niaid.nih.gov |
NIAID
Funds Construction of Biosafety Laboratories
The National Institute of Allergy and
Infectious Diseases (NIAID), part of the National Institutes of
Health, today announced funding for the construction of two National
Biocontainment Laboratories (NBLs) and nine Regional Biocontainment
Laboratories (RBLs). “These awards to build high-level biosafety
facilities are a major step towards being able to provide Americans
with effective therapies, vaccines and diagnostics for diseases
caused by agents of bioterror as well as for naturally occurring
emerging infections such as SARS and West Nile virus,”
says Health and Human Services Secretary Tommy G. Thompson.
One-time grants of approximately $120 million
each will fund construction of the NBLs, while the RBLs will receive
one-time grants of between $7 and $21 million each in construction
funds. Each institution is also required to provide matching funds.
| Institution (Location) |
Construction Location |
Principal Investigator |
| NBLs |
|
|
| Boston University |
Boston University Medical Center |
Mark Klempner, M.D. |
| University
of Texas
Medical Branch at Galveston |
University
of Texas
Medical Branch at Galveston |
Stanley Lemon, M.D. |
| |
|
|
RBLs |
|
|
| Colorado State University (Fort Collins) |
Foothills Campus, Fort Collins, CO |
Anthony Frank, D.V.M., Ph.D. |
| Duke University (Durham) |
Duke University Medical Center |
R.S. Williams, M.D. |
| Tulane University (New Orleans) |
Tulane National
Primate Research Center, Covington,
LA |
Paul Whelton, M.D., B.Ch., B.A.O. |
| University
of Alabama
at Birmingham |
University
of Alabama
at Birmingham School of
Medicine |
Richard Marchase, Ph.D. |
| University
of Chicago |
Argonne National Laboratory, Argonne,
IL |
Thomas Rosenbaum, Ph.D. |
| University
of Medicine
and Dentistry of New Jersey (Newark) |
University
of Medicine
and Dentistry of New Jersey |
Russell Joffe, M.B., B.Ch. |
| University
of Missouri
(Columbia) |
University of Missouri-Columbia
College of
Veterinary Medicine |
Joe Kornegay, D.V.M., Ph.D. |
| University
of Pittsburgh |
University
of Pittsburgh |
Arthur Levine, M.D. |
| University
of Tennessee
(Memphis) |
University of Tennessee Health Science
Center |
Michael Dockter, Ph.D. |
In February 2002, an outside panel of experts
provided guidance to NIAID on its biodefense research agenda and
identified the insufficient amount of biosafety level 3 (BSL-3)
and BSL-4 lab space as a significant barrier to progress.
“With input from the scientific community,
we have crafted a biodefense research agenda emphasizing rapid
translation of basic findings into real products,” says Anthony
S. Fauci, M.D., NIAID director. “Although the agenda is ambitious,
America’s scientists have the commitment, creativity and energy
equal to the task. The new laboratories will give these dedicated
scientists space to conduct this critical research, and equally
important, they will be able to conduct it safely.”
The overall objective of the NBL construction
program is to provide funding to design, construct and commission
comprehensive, state-of-the-art BSL-4, BSL-3 and BSL-2 laboratories,
as well as associated research and administrative support space;
the RBL construction program will provide funding for similar
facilities containing BSL-3 and BSL-2 labs. The BSL labs will
be designed and built using the strictest federal standards, incorporating
special engineering and design features to prevent microorganisms
from being released into the environment. Numerous safety and
decontamination features provide multiple layers of protection
for lab workers and the surrounding environment.
The NBL and RBL sites were selected based
on multiple factors, but primarily on the scientific and technical
merit of the applications as assessed by peer review and on the
applicant’s ability to contribute to the overall NIAID biodefense
research agenda. The NBLs and RBLs will complement and support
the research activities of NIAID’s recently awarded Regional Centers
of Excellence for Biodefense and Emerging Infectious Diseases
Research (see http://www.niaid.nih.gov/newsroom/releases/HHS_RCE.htm).
The biosafety labs also will be available and prepared to assist
national, state and local public health efforts in the event of
a bioterrorism or infectious disease emergency.
NIAID is a component of the National Institutes
of Health (NIH), which is an agency of the Department of Health
and Human Services. NIAID supports basic and applied research
to prevent, diagnose and treat infectious and immune-mediated
illnesses, including HIV/AIDS and other sexually transmitted diseases,
illness from potential agents of bioterrorism, tuberculosis, malaria,
autoimmune disorders, asthma and allergies.
###
Press releases, fact sheets
and other NIAID-related materials are available on the NIAID Web
site at http://www.niaid.nih.gov.
The
National Institute of Allergy and Infectious Diseases
is a component of the National Institutes of Health,
U.S. Department of Health and Human Services
Sept. 16,
2003 Contact: Christian Basi
Assistant Director
(573) 882-4430
BasiC@missouri.edu
MU STUDIES ‘RABBIT
FEVER’ AS PART OF BIODEFENSE RESEARCH PLAN
COLUMBIA, Mo. —
Rabbit hunting season begins soon in many states. People enjoy the
sport of hunting cottontails, but since Sept. 11, rabbits have taken
on a whole new meaning for biodefense researchers at the University
of Missouri-Columbia. MU veterinarians will try to unravel the science
behind Rabbit Fever, also known as tularemia, a deadly infectious
disease that the U.S. government has identified as a potential biological
weapon.
"We have to stay
ahead of the threat, so we’re working to discover a treatment
for people who have been infected with Rabbit Fever,” said
Tom Reilly, an assistant professor of veterinary pathobiology
in the Veterinary Medicine Diagnostic Laboratory. “While
the tularemia strain that is usually found in nature can be treated
with antibiotics, we are concerned that there could be strains
resistant to that type of treatment.
Tularemia is classified
as an intracellular pathogen, an organism that seeks to get inside
the body’s cells before doing any damage. Typically, once
a foreign organism enters the body, the body’s immune response
acts by engulfing the organism inside various cells. This triggers
a mechanism known as the respiratory burst that destroys the foreign
organism. However, when this same process is activated with tularemia,
the disease shuts down the respiratory burst mechanism and multiplies
within the body.
“We believe
that a specific enzyme that tularemia carries is responsible for
this action,” Reilly said. “Our current research is
exploring how we might neutralize the enzyme and, in fact, turn
it into a vaccine. If we are able to create a non-replicating
vaccine, or a vaccine from dead materials, it would be beneficial
to people who are having certain immune system difficulties since
they could be more susceptible to this disease than others.”
Tularemia was first discovered
in 1911 and described as a plague-like disease in rodents. Shortly
after the discovery, it was recognized as a potentially severe and
fatal illness in humans. In the 1930s, there were several thousand
cases reported in the United States each year, but that figure fell
to a yearly average of 130 by the 1990s. The bacteria enters the
body through numerous modes of transmission including under the
fingernails, through open wounds, inhalation, ingestion, or bites
from ticks and deerflies. Only 10 organisms are needed to begin
an infection in the body.
The disease typically
affects veterinarians, hunters and others who work with animals
and it can be found in dogs and cats. There are no definitive signs
for diagnosis, so recent history of the patient is very important.
Typically, 24 to 48 hours after contracting the disease, there are
signs of pneumonia and fever.
Sept. 30, 2003
Contact: Christian Basi
Assistant Director
(573) 882-4430
BasiC@missouri.edu
MU AWARDED $10 MILLION GRANT FOR SWINE RESOURCE CENTER
Center will Conduct Research on Heart Disease, Diabetes, Cryopreservation
and Pathogens
COLUMBIA, Mo. — The University of Missouri-Columbia was awarded
nearly $10 million in research and construction grants from the
National Institutes of Health for a one-of-a-kind center that will
supply genetic material and swine to researchers across the globe
who are studying a multitude of health issues. At the same time,
scientists at the center will conduct life-saving research.
“This is a wonderful recognition
of our life sciences researchers and the expertise on this campus
as we had to compete against other major research institutions
in the country to get this award,” said Jim Coleman, vice
provost for research. “This will be the only swine research
center in the nation and it will serve requests from all over
the world. In addition, our own researchers will be working to
solve some of the foremost health problems of the nation.”
Swine share anatomic and physiologic characteristics
with humans that make them ideal models for the study of human diseases
such as cardiovascular diseases and diabetes. Pig organs also are
excellent candidates for transplantation into humans who are in
need of life-saving organ replacements.
MU was awarded $7.1 million to fund the center,
and $2.84 million to construct a building for the center. Current
plans call for the center to be located southeast of the MU Animal
Sciences Research Center. The center will function as both a repository
and a distribution hub for swine models used in a variety of research.
While the center will contribute to a limitless number of research
projects, three areas MU researchers will study include development
of new transgenic pigs, improving cryopreservation and pathogen
detection. Lela Riley, John Critser and Steve Kleiboeker from the
College of Veterinary Medicine will join Randy Prather and Ed Rucker
from the College of Agriculture, Food and Natural Resources to operate
the center.
“While we will be a valuable
resource to scientists, we also will be working on a variety of
research projects and serving as a training ground for some of
our undergraduates and graduate students,” Riley said. “The
center will be invaluable in our research that detects pathogens
in frozen sperm and embryos as well as help us improve our long-term
preservation techniques to ensure the genetic material from one
specific line of animals is never lost.”
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