Share thisHaving just returned from the Eagleson Institute’s high containment colloquium in Maine, where lively discussion of biocontainment was the order of the day, I felt it would be interesting to share the insight that I received as to the state of containment and facilities in general from both the presenters and the attendees.
There are a number of factors driving both the need for biocontainment and the specifics of facilities. There is debate over how much biocontainment can effectively be brought online and recognition over the stretching of resources required for planning, design, and operation of these facilities. There is little debate; however, over the need for vaccines, therapeutics, and novel solutions to mitigate the threat that pathogenic organisms present to global public health and the global economy. This issue will be driving the need for increasing the infectious disease research and development infrastructure for many years to come. It is also shaping specific facility responses to allow this R&D to evolve.
Drivers of Biocontainment Facility Design
Questions I am often asked include “Why are biocontainment facilities so different?” “Why can’t we just repeat the same model?” The answer is simple; there are many different factors that drive the requirements for different facilities. The main drivers of biocontainment facility design are:
- Specific organisms or classes of organisms to be used and how they are used
- Regulations and guidelines applied to the facility
- Amount and type of animal use
- Technologies employed
- Size of facility and available budget
What organisms you plan to use and how you use them will drive your facility. The risk assessment that will determine how you operate in the facility is the foundation that will also drive how the facility is developed. It is well accepted that the risk varies between organisms. It is also accepted that the risk will vary with use, for example the difference between a small diagnostic sample or a hundred liter tank; the difference between handling a small quantity in a biosafety cabinet or handling large animals infected with the same organism. While there are too many such combinations to quantify, there are also that many differences in facility requirements.