Alkaline hydrolysis-based tissue dissolvers (TDs) are commercially available tools for the digestion and decontamination of infectious animal waste. The authors carried out a series of experiments to verify whether the TD in their facility completely digested animal carcasses and inactivated infectious agents. Using the manufacturer's recommended cycle parameters, the TD inactivated a high concentration of chemically resistant bacterial spores used as a surrogate for the infectious agents in use in the facility. Animal tissues were completely digested into a non-infectious liquid effluent that could be disposed of directly to the sanitary sewer. Reducing the cycle time by 50% still inactivated all spores, although a small amount of tissue remained undigested. The authors recommend that each facility carry out its own experiments to verify the efficacy of a TD before use, given that the design and style of TD as well as the composition of the tissue load is likely to vary between facilities.
Anesthetic gases such as halogenated gases used independently or in conjunction with nitrous oxide are utilized to sedate animals prior to surgery. Acute and chronic exposure to anesthetic gas poses a risk to human health; therefore, appropriate controls must be utilized to protect the health of employees handling anesthetic gases. Engineering controls and work practice controls were developed at the University of Pittsburgh Regional Biocontainment Laboratory (RBL) to protect workers from exposure to levels of waste anesthetic gases (WAG) that exceed the recommended exposure limit (REL). Additionally, a decontamination strategy for monitoring badges was developed so that the monitoring badges used in BSL-3 facilities to detect and quantify WAG exposure could be safely analyzed outside of the BSL-3.
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The use of common marmosets as an alternative non-human primate model for infectious disease research using BSL-3 viruses such as Rift Valley fever virus (RVFV) presents unique challenges with respect to housing, handling, and safety. Subject matter experts from veterinary care, animal husbandry, biosafety, engineering, and research were consulted to design a pilot experiment using marmosets infected with RVFV. This paper reviews the caging, handling, and safety-related adaptations and modifications that were required to humanely utilize marmosets as a model for high-hazard BSL-3 viral diseases.
This article provides a description of the improvement and enhancement of the mentored training program for investigative staff at the University of Pittsburgh Regional Biocontainment Laboratory (UPitt RBL) as originally described in "Evolution of a facilityspecific BSL-3 training program for the University of Pittsburgh Regional Biocontainment Laboratory" (Hartman, 2010). During the third year of operation of the UPitt RBL, the Team responsible for managing the facility identified a number of specific areas for improvement in the mentored training program, including internal communication among the Team and between the Team and investigators, verifying proficiency at biosafety levels 1 and 2 prior to initiating training at biosafety level 3, establishing mentor qualifications, clarifying and restructuring the training assignments for mentor and trainee, improving the training documentation, and requiring final observation by management prior to granting independent access. Upon completion of the objectives, the Team formalized the program and implemented it for all new investigative trainees. The enhanced program provides a higher level of assurance that lab personnel are competent and proficient to work with biosafety level 3 agents.
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