# Upgrading infectious disease research facilities at University of Louisville RBL > **NIH NIH G20** · UNIVERSITY OF LOUISVILLE · 2021 · $3,333,333 ## Abstract The University of Louisville Regional Biocontainment Laboratory (RBL) is an operational unit of the University’s Center for Predictive Medicine for Biodefense and Emerging Infectious Diseases (CPM). The CPM operates the only Biosafety Level 3 laboratories and animal research facilities available to researchers in the Commonwealth of Kentucky. As such we are a regional resource for two Carnegie Research I (highly research intensive) Universities—the University of Louisville and the University of Kentucky—as well as for the local biotechnology industry and other universities and non-profit organizations. The University of Louisville has been an outstanding steward of the RBL, paying meticulous attention to the facility needs. However, after a decade, we have encountered some challenges, primarily with obsolescence of control systems, and wear and tear on some of the building air handling systems. The necessary HVAC upgrades are already being addressed by the University, but we request support from NIAID through this G20 for additional facility related upgrades and modernization of research equipment SPECIFIC AIMS We propose to address specific facility operational needs in both the fixed building infrastructure and in upgrading and modernizing our in vivo and in vitro research capabilities. We propose incorporating modern state-of-the-art instrumentation to build solid foundations for innovations in biodefense and emerging infectious disease research. The building systems upgrades that directly affect operations of the containment space will be scheduled during the annual preventative maintenance shutdown periods to be conducted in November/December 2021 and 2022. Similarly, new in vivo and in vitro research equipment shall be installed during the annual shutdown to allow for service professionals to install and commission the equipment without needing to address biosafety training and Select Agent-specific standard operating procedures. Aim 1: Repair, renovate and modernize RBL building systems to enhance functions and operations of the existing research facilities. We propose to address specific facility operational needs in the fixed building infrastructure. We shall upgrade critical facility systems that are facing imminent obsolescence and rectify one major facility design defect that placed some inconveniences and limitations on research operations: the BSL-3- ABSL-3 passthrough boxes. The long-term commitment of the CPM is to support basic and translational research that leads to the development of countermeasures for biodefense and emerging infectious agents. These upgrades will secure our ability to maintain our BSL-3 research program and continue to develop innovative countermeasures against biodefense and emerging infectious disease threats. Aim 2: Enhance and modernize the CPM RBL in vivo research capabilities. The COVID-19 pandemic validated the significance and need for ABSL-3 facilities such as we have at the... ## Key facts - **NIH application ID:** 10394525 - **Project number:** 1G20AI167407-01 - **Recipient organization:** UNIVERSITY OF LOUISVILLE - **Principal Investigator:** KENNETH E PALMER - **Activity code:** G20 (R01, R21, SBIR, etc.) - **Funding institute:** NIH - **Fiscal year:** 2021 - **Award amount:** $3,333,333 - **Award type:** 1 - **Project period:** 2021-09-23 → 2025-02-28 ## Primary source NIH RePORTER: https://reporter.nih.gov/project-details/10394525 ## Citation > US National Institutes of Health, RePORTER application 10394525, Upgrading infectious disease research facilities at University of Louisville RBL (1G20AI167407-01). Retrieved via AI Analytics 2026-05-29 from https://api.ai-analytics.org/grant/nih/10394525. Licensed CC0. --- *[NIH grants dataset](/datasets/nih-grants) · CC0 1.0*