A Review of Filovirus Work and Facilities at The Defence Science and Technology Laboratory Porton Down

Smither, Sophie J.; Lever, Mark S.

doi:10.3390/v4081305

Cited by 7 publications

(7 citation statements)

References 10 publications

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“…All virus manipulation, inactivation, and subsequent testing were carried out under BSL/CL 4 conditions in previously described facilities (16 Viral inactivation. The inactivation efficacy of Buffer AVL, ethanol, and heat were evaluated individually as was the combination of Buffer AVL and ethanol and Buffer AVL and heat.…”

Section: Methodsmentioning

confidence: 99%

Buffer AVL Alone Does Not Inactivate Ebola Virus in a Representative Clinical Sample Type

et al. 2015

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Rapid inactivation of Ebola virus (EBOV) is crucial for high-throughput testing of clinical samples in low-. In response to this outbreak, the international community has deployed an increasing number of Ebola diagnostic laboratories into the main West African countries affected (Guinea, Liberia, and Sierra Leone). Rapid diagnosis of EVD in humans is critical in the management of this disease in outbreak situations, as it allows prompt isolation and the chance to provide the best supportive care to patients, which helps reduce the overall infection rate and break the transmission chain.The preferred clinical sample for testing for Ebola virus (EBOV), an enveloped negative-sense single-strand RNA virus, is EDTA-blood, serum, or plasma with the primary diagnostic technology being real-time PCR (2). Other sample types, such as swabs or urine, may also be received by a laboratory. EBOV is designated in the United Kingdom by the Advisory Committee on Dangerous Pathogens (ACDP) as a hazard group 4 pathogen that must be handled under containment level (CL) 4 standards (biosafety level 4 [BSL4] in other countries). As such stringent laboratory infrastructure and containment procedures are required to handle viable EBOV material, only a few laboratories in Europe and elsewhere are suitably equipped (3). Within the timelines and budgets available, it has been impractical to create this laboratory infrastructure in West Africa, and therefore diagnostic laboratories have relied on methods that rapidly inactivate EBOV prior to routine processing and testing of samples by PCR.Laboratory methods of EBOV inactivation include gamma irradiation (4), nanoemulsion (5), photoinducible alkylating agents (6), and UV radiation (7), but these methods are primarily used for research purposes and may not be practicable in an outbreak situation that is likely to involve a high number of samples but reduced capability for handling and manipulation. In this context, any inactivation method must also be compatible with the EBOV PCR diagnostic approach.The CDC recommends Triton X-100 and heat treatment for 1 h for diagnostic samples containing hemorrhagic fever viruses (8), and this method has been adopted by many laboratories for handling of samples that may contain EBOV (9). Heating (alone or with acetic acid) for 1 h at 60°C has also been shown to reduce the titer of EBOV (10). Other guidelines can be nonspecific, specifying only the need for inactivation but not suggesting how (11) or suggesting generic use of denaturing/lysis buffers and/or heat (12). In the United Kingdom, the Advisory Committee on Dangerous Pathogens guidelines state that samples from confirmed cases may be processed in a containment level 2 laboratory using routine autoanalyzers if a containment level 4 laboratory is not available and provided specific procedures are followed (13). Within these guidelines, which encompass the application of multiple clinical tests, there is no specific requirement to inactivate EBOV (or other viral hemorrhagic fever agents) within a sa...

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Section: Methodsmentioning

confidence: 99%

Buffer AVL Alone Does Not Inactivate Ebola Virus in a Representative Clinical Sample Type

et al. 2015

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“…Rapid and reliable diagnosis of Ebola in a field setting presents many challenges to any virologist used to a world of regulated, multimillion pound high-containment laboratories with a host of sensitive, high-tech equipment to ensure accuracy and biosafety [8]. Attempt to recreate this environment in a tent in West Africa and many virologists could not be blamed for feeling a little uneasy.…”

mentioning

confidence: 97%

What are the Challenges Associated with Testing For Ebola? A Focus on the 2014 Outbreak in West Africa

Newman¹

2015

Future Virol.

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“…All growth and manipulation of EBOV-Ecran was performed within a Class III microbiological safety cabinet within a dedicated containment level 4 laboratory at Defence Science and Technology Laboratory (Dstl), Porton Down [ 12 ].…”

Section: Methodsmentioning

confidence: 99%

Effectiveness of Four Disinfectants against Ebola Virus on Different Materials

Smither

Phelps

Eastaugh

et al. 2016

Viruses

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The West Africa Ebola virus (EBOV) outbreak has highlighted the need for effective disinfectants capable of reducing viral load in a range of sample types, equipment and settings. Although chlorine-based products are widely used, they can also be damaging to equipment or apparatus that needs continuous use such as aircraft use for transportation of infected people. Two aircraft cleaning solutions were assessed alongside two common laboratory disinfectants in a contact kill assay with EBOV on two aircraft relevant materials representative of a porous and non-porous surface. A decimal log reduction of viral titre of 4 is required for a disinfectant to be deemed effective and two of the disinfectants fulfilled this criteria under the conditions tested. One product, Ardrox 6092, was found to perform similarly to sodium hypochlorite, but as it does not have the corrosive properties of sodium hypochlorite, it could be an alternative disinfectant solution to be used for decontamination of EBOV on sensitive apparatus.

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A Review of Filovirus Work and Facilities at The Defence Science and Technology Laboratory Porton Down

Cited by 7 publications

References 10 publications

Buffer AVL Alone Does Not Inactivate Ebola Virus in a Representative Clinical Sample Type

Buffer AVL Alone Does Not Inactivate Ebola Virus in a Representative Clinical Sample Type

What are the Challenges Associated with Testing For Ebola? A Focus on the 2014 Outbreak in West Africa

Effectiveness of Four Disinfectants against Ebola Virus on Different Materials

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