Gammacell-220 Excel Refurbished Research Irradiator

描述（由申请人提供）：在过去的二十年里，德克萨斯大学加尔维斯顿分校（UTMB）建立了一个主要的传染病研究项目，重点研究新发感染和生物防御病原体，以符合NIAID的使命，为这些病原体制定对策。这一成功在很大程度上归功于世界级研究人员的数量和独特实验室设施的可用性。2003年，UTMB是唯一获得NIAID资助的学术机构，建立了生物防御和新发传染病研究区域卓越中心和国家生物防护实验室（NBL），以提供更多的高防护实验室空间。此外，在NIAID的部分支持下，2003年开设了一个生物安全4级（BSL4）实验室（并于2004年投入使用），这是北美大学校园中第一个此类实验室。这些设施为加强整体研究工作提供了机会，包括对世界上最危险的病原体进行研究的能力。该研究所研究任务范围固有的一项关键要求是与区域和国家研究人员共享这些设施，并为只能在这些高密封设施中进行的研究提供支助服务。一种可靠的生物安全和生物安保方法对于安全共享和使用高危险剂至关重要。因此，总体目标是采购一台Gammacell 220 Excel翻新研究辐照器，以提供最具可重复性和可控的方法来灭活这些危险剂，同时保持其生物特性。使用该仪器的一个例子将是灭活裂谷热病毒，以便可以在BSL4实验室之外安全地进行基因组和蛋白质组学分析。该辐照器将可供美国国立卫生研究院支持的UTMB研究者以及美国国立卫生研究院支持的区域和国家研究者使用。当NBL于2008年完工时，该设施的研究人员也将可以使用辐照器。本文描述了一个具有代表性的用户组，其中包括14个主要用户（其中12个是NIH资助的）和7个次要用户，代表了涉及UTMB多个部门的多学科研究项目。值得注意的是，随着BSL4实验室的使用增加和NBL的完成，拟议的伽马辐照器的使用将急剧增加。该辐照器将由一个咨询监督委员会作为UTMB生物防御和新发传染病中心的核心设施进行维护和操作。每年的维护费用将通过BSL4服务中心向Pis收取。辐照装置将大大提高研究人员安全、高效地进行研究的能力，并保护社区免受与这些威胁生命的病原体打交道可能带来的任何威胁。

DESCRIPTION (provided by applicant): Over the past two decades, the University of Texas Medical Branch at Galveston (UTMB) has built a premier infectious disease research program focused on emerging infections and biodefense pathogens in accordance with the NIAID's mission to develop countermeasures for these agents. This success is largely due to a critical mass of world-class researchers and the availability of unique laboratory facilities. In 2003, UTMB was the only academic institution awarded NIAID grants to establish both a Regional Center of Excellence for Biodefense and Emerging Infectious Disease Research and a National Biocontainment Laboratory (NBL) to provide more high containment laboratory space. In addition, with partial support from the NIAID, a toiosafety level 4 (BSL4) laboratory was opened in 2003 (and became operational in 2004) as the first laboratory of its type on a university campus in North America. These facilities provide an opportunity to increase overall research efforts, including the capability to conduct studies on the world's most dangerous pathogens. A critical requirement inherent to the scope of the NIAID's research mission is to share these facilities with regional and national researchers and to provide support services for research that can only be done in these high containment facilities. A reliable biosafety and biosecurity method is essential for sharing and working safely with the highly dangerous agents. Therefore, the overall objective is to procure a Gammacell 220 Excel refurbished research irradiator to provide the most reproducible and controlled method to inactivate these dangerous agents while at the same time preserving their biological properties. An example of use of this instrument will be to inactivate Rift Valley fever virus such that genomic and proteomics analysis can be safely performed outside the BSL4 laboratory. The irradiator will be available for use by NIH-supported UTMB investigators, as well as NIH-supported regional and national investigators. When the NBL is completed in 2008, researchers from that facility will also have access to the irradiator. A representative users' group with 21 funded grants are described, including 14 major (12 of which are NIH- funded) and 7 minor users representing multidisciplinary research projects involving several departments at UTMB. It is important to note that usage of the proposed gamma irradiator will drastically increase as usage of the BSL4 laboratory increases and with the completion of the NBL. The irradiator will be maintained and operated under an advisory oversight committee as a core facility in the Center for Biodefense and Emerging Infectious Diseases at UTMB. Yearly maintenance fees will be charged to Pis and administered through the BSL4 Service Center. The irradiator will significantly enhance the ability of investigators to conduct research safely and more efficiently, as well as protect the community from any threats that may be associated with working with these life-threatening pathogens.