Publicity

The July 25th issue of The Independent, often just referred to as "the Indy", has a story on biological research. It's titled in their inimitable way as "Biotech or Biohazard?". The story is about the National Bio and Agro-Defense Facility, a new 520,000-square-foot federal laboratory designed to research and combat the world's deadliest germs and potential biological weapons. One of the short list of locations for the lab is in nearby Butner NC, around 30 miles from the RTP area.

The reason I mention this is that in a sidebar article about local Biosafety Level 3 facilities, the building I work in gets mentioned! Eeek. There'll be crowds of protestors descending down upon us. Wonderful!

By the way, if this sorta thing gets you worried--this list is so incomplete... there's dozens not listed on here. Fortunately I just have to deal with level one and two biohazards.


DURHAM
Duke University
* Cancer Center Isolation Facility, Research Drive—Studies cancer biology and treatment
* Global Health Research Building, Research Drive and Erwin Road—Researches and develops vaccines, drugs and diagnostics against emerging infections such as tuberculosis, SARS and influenza

RALEIGH
State government
* N.C. State Laboratory of Public Health (two facilities), 306 N. Wilmington St.—Tests for common infectious diseases as well as bioterrorism agents
* Rollins Animal Disease Diagnostic Lab, N.C. Dept. of Agriculture and Consumer Services, 2101 Blue Ridge Road—Satellite facility of the National Animal Health Laboratory Network; tests classical swine fever, avian influenza and exotic Newcastle disease
N.C. State University
* College of Veterinary Medicine, 4700 Hillsborough St.— Two labs research animal diseases

CHAPEL HILL
UNC
* Carolina Vaccine Institute, 99 Manning Drive—Researches contagious viruses, such as Venezuelan equine encephalitis
* Mary Ellen Jones Building, Manning and West drives—Venezuelan equine encephalitis
* Medical Biomolecular Research Building, 103 Mason Farm Road—No public record of research
* School of Public Health (two facilities), 135 Dauer Drive—Researches primarily HIV

RTP
* AlphaVax Vaccine Development Lab, 2 Triangle Drive—Researches HIV and SARS; in early production of biodefense vaccines for the Marburg virus, encephalitis,botulism and smallpox

Comments

kenju said…
Those are the perks of living in our high-bio-tech area, huh? You forgot to mention the nuclear energy facility just down tyhe road apiece. LOL
6:02 PM
rosemary said…
EEKKK is right. That is quite a list of unwantables!
7:14 PM
Anonymous said…
What a list! BTW, I had to come here as you were kind of missed. Now we can't have that!
11:20 AM
utenzi said…
Thanks for the visit, Gautami. Wordnerd was bad--and not for the first time. She's not very good with rules.
11:43 AM
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