The new ML-III laboratory in the EGM-designed O|2 Lab Building officially opened on Friday 6 July.
In the new research spaces of O|2, the VU Amsterdam and the Amsterdam UMC can conduct fundamental research into the spread and resistance of, among others, the active XDR-TB bacteria, which causes resistant tuberculosis, still one of the deadliest illnesses. The ML-III Lab is of vital importance in developing the next generation of antibiotics and effectively combating resistant bacteria. The Lab consists of three laboratories with containment level III, which means that staff can work on various research programmes at the same time.
The ML-III Lab is a campus-wide facility, specially designed for researchers working with seriously pathogenic bacteria, parasites and viruses. The staff can work there safely, and the spread of micro-organisms is prevented by the high level of safety measures. For example, there is a separate air system from the rest of the building, with reduced pressure compared to the rest of the building, and extracted air is carefully filtered. In addition, there is a special clothing procedure, and staff undergo extensive training before they can work in the laboratory. The new state-of-the-art facility in the O|2 Lab Building meets all the current standards for a level III laboratory.
EGM designed the O|2 Lab Building, which has come into operation in phases since its completion. The building houses various research laboratories, among them chemical laboratories, a radionuclides laboratory and microbiological laboratories for research involving pathogenic micro-organisms of various risk levels. O|2 facilitates advanced scientific research into issues in the field of Human Life Sciences. Researchers work here ‘from bench to bedside’, from molecule to cell, to tissue, to patient.
This year O|2 received a nomination for the prestigious MIPIM Award in the category Best Healthcare Development.
2018.07.06