What do the Bio-safety level designations mean?
There are four biosafety containment levels (BSLs) that define proper laboratory techniques, safety equipment, and design, depending on the types of microbes or agents being studied. Where a microbe is confined is based on the degree of hazard posed by the microbe:

• BSL-1 labs are used to study microbes that don’t normally cause disease in healthy adults. They follow basic safety procedures and require no special equipment or design features.

• BSL-2 labs are used to study microbes that can infect humans if accidentally inhaled, swallowed, or enter the skin, but don’t usually cause serious disease. All of these diseases can be cured because there is an existing vaccine or treatment. Safety measures include the use of gloves and eyewear as well as hand washing sinks and waste decontamination equipment like autoclaves (sophisticated pressure cookers).

• BSL-3 labs are used to study microbes that can be transmitted through the air and can cause serious disease or death if untreated. These diseases are treatable with existing vaccines or treatments. Researchers perform lab work in a gas-tight room within boxes that filter the air. Other safety features include clothing decontamination, sealed windows and rooms, and specialized ventilation systems with HEPA filters. Most facilities and Universities in the US with infectious disease research programs have BSL-3 labs, and many hospitals have BSL-3 areas for isolating patients with highly contagious diseases. BSL-3 labs work with pathogens such as anthrax and plague. Access to BSL-3 labs is tightly controlled.

• BSL-4 labs are used to study microbes that can cause serious illness or death and for which no vaccine or therapy is commonly available. Lab personnel are required to wear full-body sealed suits with their own air supply and to shower when exiting the facility. The labs incorporate all BSL 3 features and occupy safe, isolated zones within a larger building. Those zones are at negative atmospheric pressure to keep all air within the lab and filtered. BSL-4 labs work with pathogens such as ebola and other hemorrhagic fevers. Access to BSL-4 labs is tightly controlled, physically and procedurally.

Sources:

http://www.niaid.nih.gov/topics/BiodefenseRelated/Biodefense/PublicMedia/pages/faqs.aspx
www.selectagents.gov
www.cdc.gov
www.usda.gov
http://www.cdc.gov/biosafety/publications/bmbl5/index.htm 
http://www.bordeninstitute.army.mil/published_volumes/biological_warfare/BW-ch22.pdf 
http://www.nems.nih.gov/Pages/default.aspx 

 

Show All Answers

1. What is a containment lab?
2. What do the Bio-safety level designations mean?
3. What Containment labs operate in Frederick County?
4. What is the National Interagency Biodefense Campus (NIBC)?
5. What disease-causing organisms do the labs in Frederick County work on?
6. What is a select agent and how are they controlled?
7. Do the labs in Frederick County conduct research on ‘weaponized’ pathogens and/or conduct classified research?
8. Why would any laboratory choose to work with select agents?
9. Who operates the labs?
10. Where are the BSL-3 and BSL-4 containment labs located in Frederick County?
11. Why are these labs in Frederick County and not somewhere else?
12. What are the potential ways for microbes to escape from a lab, and how do the labs prevent this from happening?
13. What agencies oversee operations to ensure safety?
14. How often are the labs inspected?
15. How did the presentations at the CLCAC Meeting by Emergency and Health Services personnel relate to the charted mission of the CLCAC regarding public health and safety of the Frederick community?
16. What is the time-line for Fort Detrick Officials to notify Frederick County first-responders when there is an abnormal event or incident on the Fort Detrick campus?
17. What is the County action plan for public notification and potential evacuation when Fort Detrick reports the release of an infectious material/toxin/contaminated animal or specimen into the Community
18. What are the notification procedures in the event of a release of an infectious material(s) or toxin or contaminated animal or specimen (“materials") at a Fort Detrick facility?
19. Is there a permanent real-time meteorological monitoring station on the Fort Detrick campus which supports an abnormal event or incident on the Fort Detrick campus?
20. What is the difference between biological material and nuclear material?
21. How did the presentations at the CLCAC Meeting by Emergency Management and Health Services personnel relate to the charted mission of the CLCAC regarding County Public Health and Safety?