# Operations Core

> **NIH NIH UC7** · UNIVERSITY OF PITTSBURGH AT PITTSBURGH · 2024 · $1,006,216

## Abstract

OPERATIONS CORE
ABSTRACT:
The Regional Biocontainment Laboratory (RBL) within the Center for Vaccine Research (CVR) at the University
of Pittsburgh is the biosafety level-3 (BSL-3) hub for infection biology. The mission of the RBL is threefold, to
work on pathogen emergence, evolution and host-to-host transmission, to study the pathogenesis of
emerging infectious diseases and to accelerate pre-clinical development of novel interventions and medical
countermeasures for pandemic preparedness and biodefense. Our vision is to be a globally recognized, highly-
collaborative, creative and forward-facing team of infection biologists who are poised to respond to emerging
biological threats both at the national and international level. The entire facility is registered with the Division of
Select Agents and Toxins (DSAT). It brings together infection biologists and clinicians from a variety of disciplines
who require BSL-3 and animal (A)BSL-3 facilities for their wide ranging viral and bacterial research programs.
The Operations Core will be responsible for the formal operationalization and development of our existing
structures. These have evolved from the time the RBL was established, and although they have served their
purpose, require modernization to ensure they will remain current and operationally fit-for-purpose.
Biocontainment work is operationally complex, infrastructure-dense, and comprehensively regulated. Running
BSL-3 laboratories safely, securely and successfully demands having a well-organized and highly integrated
team of administrators, scientists, biosafety/biosecurity professionals, engineers/facilities staff and
veterinarians/zootechnical staff. This is especially important in multi-pathogen, multi-user research facilities that
study standard and select agent BSL-3 pathogens. The Operations Core will provide overall management and
budgetary responsibility for the RBL. It will administer the daily, weekly, monthly and yearly BSL-3 activities
essential for the support and services arms of the RBL to function. This will ensure that the BSL-3 laboratories
are run and maintained at the highest standards and they are safe and secure. Operational support for the RBL
in Pittsburgh will ensure we are ready to support any national response to a range of emerging infectious
diseases in the event of another pandemic or bioterrorism attack. Supporting this cohort of BSL-3 scientists, who
can pivot to work on new pathogens in an emergency, is certain to pay dividends.

## Key facts

- **NIH application ID:** 10910181
- **Project number:** 5UC7AI180311-02
- **Recipient organization:** UNIVERSITY OF PITTSBURGH AT PITTSBURGH
- **Principal Investigator:** William Paul Duprex
- **Activity code:** UC7 (R01, R21, SBIR, etc.)
- **Funding institute:** NIH
- **Fiscal year:** 2024
- **Award amount:** $1,006,216
- **Award type:** 5
- **Project period:** 2023-08-18 → 2028-07-31

## Primary source

NIH RePORTER: https://reporter.nih.gov/project-details/10910181

## Citation

> US National Institutes of Health, RePORTER application 10910181, Operations Core (5UC7AI180311-02). Retrieved via AI Analytics 2026-05-27 from https://api.ai-analytics.org/grant/nih/10910181. Licensed CC0.

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