Developed by the Covid-19 Turkey Platform led by TÜBİTAK, whether some vaccine and drug candidates are effective against the virus is determined by studies carried out in the BSL-3 Laboratory, where security measures are at the highest level in the Institute of Gene Engineering and Biotechnology (GMBE) at TÜBİTAK Marmara Research Center.
Lead Researcher Dr. Hivda Ülbeği Polat and Expert Researcher Dr. Müge Serhatlı from TÜBİTAK MAM GMBE talk about the BSL-3 laboratory where the effectiveness of vaccine and drug candidates developed against coronavirus are tested and the studies conducted.
In an interview with 24 TV and CNN TÜRK, Expert Researcher Dr. Müge Serhatlı said: "At the beginning of the pandemic, we were able to act very quickly. We started to use the existing infrastructure very quickly for the Covid-19 Turkey Platform. We are looking at whether the candidate molecules developed against the coronavirus destroy the ability of the live virus to infect cells. We conduct these tests using high-tech methods in the BSL-3 laboratory using both cell culture and animals. All solid waste is placed inside with the help of a double-sided autoclave, and after decontamination, it is disposed of outside as sterile waste. We can now produce our own virus. We are very lucky to have such a laboratory under the umbrella of TÜBİTAK. We can use this infrastructure, which is a very serious investment, for Covid-19, and with the results to be obtained from here, we can support ongoing projects in our country by conducting virus neutralization experiments under the title of efficacy analysis. As all researchers working on projects, we are making great efforts to reach a point in a diligent way and to be beneficial to both our country and our people."
Lead Researcher Dr. Hivda Ülbeği Polat said, "An infrastructure that can reach 10 million Euros serves all of Turkey in the fight against coronavirus during the pandemic process. We have a certified infrastructure that has been established since 2012. Thanks to this infrastructure, we were able to carry out our studies by touching the virus quickly without hesitation during the pandemic process. Within this infrastructure, BSL-3 laboratories are designed primarily to protect the personnel and the environment. The laboratory has walls made of panel system, gas-tight doors and airlock entrance. Negative pressure is created inside. With this pressure, an aspirator-style airflow is created inside, and when the door is accidentally opened, the outside air is drawn in and the microorganisms inside are prevented from escaping. We work under -50 Pa pressure inside to increase safety. The sinks in the laboratory are connected to the liquid waste decontamination device located in the basement, and laboratory liquid waste is disposed of after being decontaminated by heat treatment in this device. We are not afraid to work with this virus because it is a laboratory with protective biosafety, the clothes that protect us and the experience we have gained so far.
Vaccines, medicines and protective products that have reached the clinical stage are tested by simulating disease in mice and other experimental animals that the WHO deems suitable for human use. This is called resistance experiments. With the experience we have gained so far and with this infrastructure, vaccines, drugs and protective products are tested by giving SARS CoV-2 Virus to animals. TÜBİTAK MAM GMBE is almost the only institution in Turkey that offers services to a wide audience with our in vivo countermeasure experiments."
You can access the interview video from the addresses below.
