{"status":"ok","message-type":"work","message-version":"1.0.0","message":{"indexed":{"date-parts":[[2026,9,8]],"date-time":"2026-09-08T02:59:02Z","timestamp":1788836342353,"version":"build-2803163510"},"reference-count":42,"publisher":"Frontiers Media SA","license":[{"start":{"date-parts":[[2021,8,13]],"date-time":"2021-08-13T00:00:00Z","timestamp":1628812800000},"content-version":"vor","delay-in-days":0,"URL":"https:\/\/creativecommons.org\/licenses\/by\/4.0\/"}],"content-domain":{"domain":["frontiersin.org"],"crossmark-restriction":true},"short-container-title":["Front. Bioeng. Biotechnol."],"abstract":"<jats:p>High containment biological laboratories (HCBL) are required for work on Risk Group 3 and 4 agents across the spectrum of basic, applied, and translational research. These laboratories include biosafety level (BSL)-3, BSL-4, animal BSL (ABSL)-3, BSL-3-Ag (agriculture livestock), and ABSL-4 laboratories. While SARS-CoV-2 is classified as a Risk Group 3 biological agent, routine diagnostic can be handled at BSL-2. Scenarios involving virus culture, potential exposure to aerosols, divergent high transmissible variants, and zoonosis from laboratory animals require higher BSL-3 measures. Establishing HCBLs especially those at BSL-4 is costly and needs continual investments of resources and funding to sustain labor, equipment, infrastructure, certifications, and operational needs. There are now over 50 BSL-4 laboratories and numerous BSL-3 laboratories worldwide. Besides technical and funding challenges, there are biosecurity and dual-use risks, and local community issues to contend with in order to sustain operations. Here, we describe case histories for distinct HCBLs: representative national centers for diagnostic and reference, nonprofit organizations. Case histories describe capabilities and assess activities during COVID-19 and include capacities, gaps, successes, and summary of lessons learned for future practice.<\/jats:p>","DOI":"10.3389\/fbioe.2021.720315","type":"journal-article","created":{"date-parts":[[2021,8,13]],"date-time":"2021-08-13T14:10:20Z","timestamp":1628863820000},"update-policy":"https:\/\/doi.org\/10.3389\/crossmark-policy","source":"Crossref","is-referenced-by-count":34,"title":["Significance of High-Containment Biological Laboratories Performing Work During the COVID-19 Pandemic: Biosafety Level-3 and -4 Labs"],"prefix":"10.3389","volume":"9","author":[{"given":"Kenneth B.","family":"Yeh","sequence":"first","affiliation":[],"role":[{"vocabulary":"crossref","role":"author"}]},{"given":"Kairat","family":"Tabynov","sequence":"additional","affiliation":[],"role":[{"vocabulary":"crossref","role":"author"}]},{"given":"Falgunee K.","family":"Parekh","sequence":"additional","affiliation":[],"role":[{"vocabulary":"crossref","role":"author"}]},{"given":"Illich","family":"Mombo","sequence":"additional","affiliation":[],"role":[{"vocabulary":"crossref","role":"author"}]},{"given":"Kyle","family":"Parker","sequence":"additional","affiliation":[],"role":[{"vocabulary":"crossref","role":"author"}]},{"given":"Kaissar","family":"Tabynov","sequence":"additional","affiliation":[],"role":[{"vocabulary":"crossref","role":"author"}]},{"given":"Shelton S.","family":"Bradrick","sequence":"additional","affiliation":[],"role":[{"vocabulary":"crossref","role":"author"}]},{"given":"Ashley S.","family":"Tseng","sequence":"additional","affiliation":[],"role":[{"vocabulary":"crossref","role":"author"}]},{"given":"Ji-Rong","family":"Yang","sequence":"additional","affiliation":[],"role":[{"vocabulary":"crossref","role":"author"}]},{"given":"Lolly","family":"Gardiner","sequence":"additional","affiliation":[],"role":[{"vocabulary":"crossref","role":"author"}]},{"given":"Gene","family":"Olinger","sequence":"additional","affiliation":[],"role":[{"vocabulary":"crossref","role":"author"}]},{"given":"Bradly","family":"Setser","sequence":"additional","affiliation":[],"role":[{"vocabulary":"crossref","role":"author"}]}],"member":"1965","published-online":{"date-parts":[[2021,8,13]]},"reference":[{"key":"B1","unstructured":"ABSA International Website2021"},{"key":"B2","unstructured":"Africa Centres for Disease Control and Prevention Website2021"},{"key":"B3","first-page":"B4-2","article-title":"Mobile\/Modular BSL-4 Containment Facilities Integrated into a Curation Receiving Laboratory for Restricted Earth Return Missions","volume":"42","author":"Calaway","year":"2018","journal-title":"42nd COSPAR Scientific Assembly"},{"key":"B4","doi-asserted-by":"publisher","DOI":"10.1089\/apb.20.0068","article-title":"Considerations for Laboratory Biosafety and Biosecurity during the Coronavirus Disease 2019 Pandemic: Applying the ISO 35001: 2019 Standard and High-Reliability Organizations Principles","author":"Callihan","year":"2021","journal-title":"Appl. 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