Facility Design

Question 1

BSL-1

Answer 1

Usuitable for work involving well-characterized agents

Question 2

BSL-2

Answer 2

suitable for work with agents that pose moderate hazards to personnel and the environment

Question 3

BSL-3

Answer 3

work performed with indigenous or exotic agents that may cause serious or potentially lethal disease

Question 4

BSL-4

Answer 4

work with dangerous/exotic agents with a high risk of
aerosol transmitted lab infections and life-threatening
disease

Question 5

ABSL-3 Ag

Answer 5

Work with RG-3 agent in high-consequence livestock

Question 6

Secondary Containment

Answer 6

Consists of facility related design features that separate the immediate work area from other parts of the facility and the outside

Question 7

Barriers Used for Secondary

Containment

Answer 7

• Physical devices
– BSCs, glove boxes
– Shielding
– Airlocks
• Construction material characteristics
– Sealed finishes
– Seamless / coved floors
• Mechanical devices
– HVAC
– Negative air flow
– Backflow preventors

Question 8

Materials that require BSL-3

Answer 8

• Propagation/concentration of HIV
– HBV,
– B. anthracis
– M. tb.
– Hantavirus
• For activities with high potential for aerosol production
– LCMV
– Yersinia pestis
– Neurotoxin producing Clostridia species
– B. pseudomallei

Question 9

Biosafety Level 3 Basic Premise

Answer 9

• All materials are handled under primary
containment, e.g., BSC
• The facility provides secondary
containment to protect people/environment
outside of laboratory

Question 10

BSL-3 Other Issues to Consider

Answer 10

• anteroom for clean storage of
supplies
• change room/ shower
• gas tight dampers to isolate lab
• liquid effluent decontamination
• HEPA filter housings - gas tight
dampers, decon. ports, / bagin/
bag-out capability, and allow for
leak testing of each filter/assembly

Question 11

Materials that require BSL-4

Answer 11

• Dangerous agents that pose risk of life
threatening disease and can be transmitted
via aerosols. Some examples:
– Variola virus (smallpox)
– Hendra/Nipah viruses
– Lassa fever virus
– Marburg virus (Haemorrhagic fever)
– Congo-Crimean Haemorrhagic fever virus
– Herpesimiae B virus (Monkey B virus)

Question 12

BSL-4 Utilities Barriers

Answer 12

• Sewer vents and other service lines protected by 2 (in
series) HEPA filters and sealed up to the second filter
• Plumbing services must have 2 (in series) backflow
prevention devices (preferably located outside of
containment area)
• A central vacuum system is not recommended. If there
is a dedicated system, then 2 in line HEPAs must be
placed as near each use point

Question 13

BSL-4 HEPA Filtration

Answer 13

Supply/exhaust to work area, inner change room,
and fumigation/decontamination chamber must be
HEPA filtered
• HEPA close to point-of-use in exhaust
• Back-up parallel HEPAs strongly recommended
• HEPA filter housings
– Designed for in situ decontamination/test
– Have gas-tight isolation dampers

Question 14

BSL-4 Cabinet Facility Add-Ons

Answer 14

• Exit through inner (dirty) change room,
personal shower and outer (clean) change
room
• A ventilated anteroom/airlock can be
provided for passage of materials, etc.
• Hands-free sink near door to cabinet room
and inner (dirty) change room

Question 15

BSL-4 Cabinet Line Class III

BSCs

Answer 15

• HEPA on supply and 2X HEPA exhaust with:
– gas tight dampers
– ports for testing
• Must have double door autoclave attached and
pass through dunk tank/fumigation chamber
• Interior with smooth finishes
• Designed to allow maintenance from outside

Question 16

BSL-4 Suit Facility Add-Ons

Answer 16

• Exhaust from lab,
decontamination shower, and
decontamination chamber must
be 2X HEPA
• Positive pressure suits air
supply must have redundant
compressors, failure alarms,
and emergency back-up

Question 17

Types of Materials Handled at

ABSL-2

Answer 17

• B. anthracis work with rodents
• Animal work with C. diptheriae
• M. tb. work in mice or guinea pigs
• Circulating Influenza strains, e.g., H1N1;
H3N2
• HIV in human primates
• Lentiviral vector or Adenoviral vector work in
rodents

Question 18

ABSL-2 Add-Ons

Answer 18

• Decontamination
– Cages should be decontaminated before washing
– Mechanical cage washer should have final rinse of 180oF

Question 19

Types of Materials Handled at

ABSL-3

Answer 19

• For animal work with
– Brucella sp. (B. melitensis, suis, abortus)
– F. tularensis (tularemia)
– Burkholderia mallei (glanders)
– Burkholderia pseudomallei (melliodosis)
– C. burnetii ( Q fever)
– Highly Pathogenic Avian Influenza (HPAI)
– West Nile Virus (mosquito borne to birds/humans)
– Alphaviruses: EEE, VEE and WEE (encephalitis)

Question 20

Materials that require BSL-3 Ag

Answer 20

• Pathogens of livestock that require ABSL-3
Ag containment include:
– Foot and mouth disease virus
– Avian influenza virus (highly pathogenic)
– Rift Valley fever virus
– Newcastle disease virus
– African and Classical swine fever virus
– Rinderpest virus, and
– Lumpy skin disease virus

Question 21

BSL-3 Ag Add-Ons to ABSL-3

Answer 21

• Access
– Entry/egress through ventilated vestibule with
doors with compressible gaskets; a “clean”
change room, a shower room; and a “dirty”
change room in containment area
The hinges and latch/knob of all passage doors shall
be sealed to airtight requirements (pressure decay
testing)

• All airlock doors have inflated or compressible
gaskets; air lines to gaskets have HEPA filters and
check valves

• Consider double containment piping system with
leak alarms and annular space decontamination
ability
• Designed to allow inspection of plumbing systems,
e.g. basements or piping tunnels

Question 22

Materials that require enhanced

BSL-3/ABSL-3

Answer 22

• Avian influenza virus
• Bacillus anthracis
• Brucella abortus
• Coccidioides immitis
• Coxiella burnetii
B. abortus
C.immitis
• Foot and mouth disease virus
• Burkholderia mallei

Question 23

Air Changes per Hour

Answer 23

air exhaust (ft3/min) x 60 (min/hr)/total room volume (ft3)

Question 24

ACH Recommendations

Answer 24

– ASHRAE - labs, 6-15 ach
– NIH- animal facilities, 10-15 ach
– OSHA - TB labs (proposed) 12 ach

Question 25

Contaminant Removal Efficiency

Answer 25

ACH 90% 99% 99.9%
   6    23     46   69
  10    14     28    41
  12    12     23   35
  15     9      18    28