Equipping a newly renovated ABSL-3 suite with a "smart" biocontainment caging system

摘要 动物生物安全3级(ABSL-3)的研究比大流行前增加了近50%，主要是由于SARS- CoV-2研究，目前耶鲁动物资源中心接近ABSL-3住房容量限制 (YARC)ABSL-3设施。为了弥补ABSL-3空间的短缺，大学出资425万美元对 流行病学和公共卫生实验室(LEPH)8楼动物设施包括修复之前的两个 退役的ABSL-3动物适合最初的ABSL-3用途。改造LEPH 8 ABSL-3套房以适应当前 ABSL-3标准将提供进行ABSL-3工作所需的基本标准，但翻新工作没有 将针头移向更高效、更安全的啮齿动物ABSL-3研究。YARC建议配备两个LEPH 8个ABSL-3动物室，共有5个Tecniplast DVC®IsoCage N生物围栏系统(和1个 旋转器)配备最新可用的家庭笼式监控系统，以充分利用新的ABSL-3套件的使用。这些 “智能”生物遏制笼将通过以下方式改变新的ABSL-3套件的使用：1)增加额外级别的 通过带笼子的密封负压笼子系统实现最大限度的人员保护 层级高效过滤器。这种额外的笼级保护措施将减少对使用多个BSL-3的担忧 一个房间内的代理，从而最大限度地提高两个动物室的灵活性；2)自动评估 笼底条件(湿度)将产生量化何时需要更换笼子的客观数据。 该系统标准化了保持架条件，避免了不必要的保持架更换，因为静态保持架通常 每7天更换一次，不考虑需要。通风与自动笼式湿度指示器相结合 将笼子更换周期延长至14天或更长时间，特别是对于数量较少和/或较小的笼子 老鼠。“按需更改”方法通过提供客观的铺设条件数据、潜力 笼养期间接触BSL-3试剂的变化从减少笼子的变化和减少废物的数量 已生成(最多可减少50%)。如果笼子淹水，湿度指示器系统也会发出紧急警报 从水源(或其他地方)检测到，防止灾难性的动物损失；以及3)自动和 持续监测和分析动物自发活动，提高动物福利 监控。由于大多数ABSL-3研究都会导致与活动水平相关的临床疾病，因此 持续远程监测活动将给动物监测带来革命性的变化。调查人员将能够在什么时候 需要面对面监控，更好地精确定位终端，以避免不必要的动物(和数据)丢失 减少与不必要/过度参与相关的非生产性时间和个人风险 ABSL-3空间。综合起来，职业安全、住房效率和动物监测将是严格的 劳动力、个人防护用品和医疗废物处理成本将下降。

ABSTRACT Animal Biosafety Level 3 (ABSL-3) studies have increase nearly 50% from pre-pandemic, in large part, by SARS- CoV-2 research and is now nearing ABSL-3 housing capacity limit in the current Yale Animal Resources Center (YARC) ABSL-3 facility. To remedy the ABSL-3 space shortfall, a $4.25M university-funded renovation of the Laboratory of Epidemiology and Public Health (LEPH) 8th floor animal facility includes restoring two previously decommissioned ABSL-3 animal suit to its original ABSL-3 use. Renovating LEPH 8 ABSL-3 suite to meet current ABSL-3 standards will provide basic criteria required for conducting ABSL-3 work but the renovation does not “move the needle” towards more efficient and safer rodent ABSL-3 research. YARC proposes to equip two LEPH 8 ABSL-3 animal rooms with a total of five Tecniplast DVC® IsoCage N biocontainment cage system (and one rotator) with a newly available home-cage monitoring system to fully leverage use of the new ABSL-3 suite. These “smart” biocontainment cages will transform use of the new ABSL-3 suite by 1) adding an additional level of biocontainment for maximum personnel protection through sealed, negative pressure caging system with cage level HEPA filtration. This additional cage level safeguard will lessen concerns over the use of multiple BSL-3 agents within one room, thereby maximizing the flexibility of the two animal rooms; 2) automated evaluation of cage bedding conditions (wetness) will result in objective data that quantifies when cage changing is required. This system standardizes cage conditions and avoids unnecessary cage changes, given static cage are typically changed on a 7-day cycle, regardless of need. The ventilation combined with automated cage wetness indicator will extend the cage change cycle to 14 days and beyond, especially for cages with lower numbers and/or smaller mice. The “change on demand” approach reduces labor by providing objective bedding condition data, potential exposure to BSL-3 agents during cage changes from reduced cage changes and decreases the amount of waste generated (up to 50% less). The wetness indictor system will also send emergency alerts if cage flooding is detected from the water source (or otherwise), guarding against catastrophic animal loss; and 3) automatic and continuous monitoring and analysis of spontaneous animal locomotion resulting in enhanced animal welfare monitoring. Since most ABSL-3 studies result in clinical disease that correlates with activity levels, the ability to continuously monitor activity remotely will revolutionize animal monitoring. Investigators will be able to target when in-person monitoring is needed, better pinpoint endpoints to subvert unnecessary animal (and data) loss and decrease the amount of unproductive time and personal risk associated with unnecessary/excessive entry into ABSL-3 space. Taken together, occupational safety, housing efficiency and animal monitoring stringency will be increased while labor, PPE and medical waste disposal costs will be decreased.