Safety
The Laboratory for Infectious Disease Research (LIDR) is designed to contain risk group 2 and 3 CDC select agents and meets all applicable local, state, and federal guidelines for containment of these agents. Laboratory biosafety guidelines for containment of microbial pathogens are described on a 4-point scale from BSL-1 to BSL-4 from least to most risk, respectively. Much of the biological research done worldwide on microbial pathogens is done in BSL-1 or BSL-2 laboratories. BSL-3 laboratories like the LIDR are specifically designed to be used with microbial agents that can cause severe and oftentimes treatable diseases and require additional precautions over BSL-2, in large part because these agents are oftentimes transmissible through aerosols. Because of this, BSL-3 facilities are some of the most cautiously designed and constructed buildings in the world.
The LIDR is a self-contained facility with its own air supplies, filters, power supplies, decontamination and waste disposal systems. All critical systems are built with redundancy so that back-up units are ready for use in the event that primary units fail. In addition, all work inside BSL3 laboratories at the LIDR is performed in specially designed biosafety cabinets providing a safe and easily cleanable work environment that protects the user from any potential aerosol produced during their experiment. Air from the entire building is then passed through a High Efficiency Particulate Air (HEPA) filter before being exhausted to the environment. Air that leaves the building ends up cleaner and safer than the air that enters the building.