Illumination | Spring 2009

Glove boxes in the lab allow researchers close observation of scientific processes.

Combating bioterror likewise hinges on learning how microscopic pathogens “stay viable” during the dissemination process — one of many reasons “MU’s biocontainment laboratory is an essential component in the national security framework,” Rebmann explains.

Anthrax stays viable using the spore, which is mostly a “protective protein coat,” Stewart says. Although a vaccine exists for the disease, genetic research at RBL presents additional opportunities.

A bacterial geneticist by training, Stewart is interested in "making mutants that will help make a better anthrax vaccine.”

Safety in Redundancy

"Redundant" doesn’t sound like a word most people would consider complimentary. But to RBL facilities director Paul Anderson, there is no higher praise.

“We have 30,000 total square feet here, but we only use 10,000 square feet for lab space,” he explains. “There’s a good reason for that.”

That reason, Anderson shows, involves the 20,000 or so square feet devoted to "redundant systems:" layer after protective layer designed to keep the RBL’s deadly charges thoroughly contained. “We have not just one, but three air handling systems,” Anderson says. “And not only do we have a backup generator if the power shuts down, but a backup battery to keep things humming until the generator kicks on.”

The extra square footage also means maintenance and engineering personnel don’t have to worry about containment outside the laboratories. Designed to make routine tasks more accessible, the containment bubble protects only the labs.

But that doesn’t mean just anyone can enter the building. Even "first responders" from police and fire departments must be escorted. And no one comes in alone. “Even lab researchers work in pairs,” Anderson explains. “It’s another failsafe to make sure nothing goes wrong.”

Entering his wife’s soon-to-be lab, Anderson waits until a monitor indicates that pressure is equalized between hallway and room. An electromagnetic lock relinquishes its grip on a rubber-sealed door with a soft click. The magnetic locks throughout the building open no door before its time, Anderson explains. “They operate in sequence, so we never break containment.”

A built-in autoclave that disinfects everything from tools to clothes illustrates the facility’s interconnectedness. The autoclave has its own boiler, one of several in the basement that generate steam to keep building systems comfortably warm for humans, but deadly hot for pathogens.

In a basement room just beyond two large Culligan water softeners, MU building systems engineer Tom Bland spends several hours every week adjusting pH, testing thermostats, and keeping watch over a pair of big blue boilers from the family-owned Hurst Company in Coolidge, Georgia.

“You can’t rush a boiler,” says Bland, who enjoys maintaining these sometimes-temperamental giants. “I can relate to that.”

Published by the Office of Research.