Date: July 30, 2026
Time: 9:00 a.m. – 12 p.m.
Location: Zoom
Quorum: Met
Call to Order: The Institutional Biosafety Committee (IBC) Chair called the meeting to order at 9:03 a.m.
Approval of Previous Minutes
Minutes from June 28, 2026, were approved as written.
Protocols Reviewed
Title: "Evaluation of immune responses of AAV-vectored vaccine candidates in mice" Major modification.
NIH Guidelines: Sections III -E-1, III-D-2 and III-F-1.
Meeting Comments: This project will use AAV vectors to deliver antigen genes in vivo and evaluate the immune response using commercially available ELISA and/or neutralization assays. No live pathogens will be used, and no challenge studies are proposed. The project does not meet DURC/P3CO criteria, and appropriate biosafety procedures and mitigation plans are in place.
o The Committee voted unanimously to approve the motion.
- Please define ITR.
- Please clarify if the ultimate desire to help in vaccine development.
- Please change the final statement to read: “Final disposal of carcasses are handled by KSU EHS”.
- Please add that the potential contaminated waste will be decontaminated with the disinfectants listed in this protocol before being disposed of in normal clear trash bags. Keep the statement for the sharps handling.
- Please confirm the disinfectants and its use in ABSL-1 and add: Dirty cages will be transported to the cage wash area in accordance with stand operational procedures and cleaned through the normal cage wash process.
Title: “Polymeric Immunoradiotherapy Agents for Treatment of Rhabdomyosarcoma”
NIH Guidelines: Section III -E-1.
Meeting Comments: The project will evaluate targeting antibodies using human rhabdomyosarcoma cell lines, including CRISPR-modified knockout cell lines. The work will be conducted in vitro under BSL-2 containment using established human tumorigenic cell lines. The project does not meet DURC/P3CO criteria, and appropriate biosafety procedures and mitigation plans are in place.
o The Committee voted unanimously to approve the motion.
- Please clarify the use of the term "stable, non-replicating cell lines," as established cell lines are expected to proliferate in culture. If referring to the absence of replication-competent viral elements, please revise the wording accordingly.
- Please review the applicable NIH Guidelines classification and provide the specific subsection(s) that apply to this research, rather than listing only the main section.
Title: “House fly-microbe interactions”
NIH Guidelines: Sections III-D-1a, III-F-8, and Appendix C-II.
Meeting Comments: In this protocol the research group intends to continue evaluating interactions between house flies and bacteria, including bacterial acquisition, survival, transmission, and antimicrobial resistance, as well as the thermal tolerance and behavior of house flies. The project does not meet DURC/P3CO criteria, and appropriate biosafety procedures and mitigation plans are in place.
o The Committee voted unanimously to approve the motion.
- Please clarify the term "knocked-down fly" as used in this section.
- Please provide additional details regarding the zoonotic agents associated with the ticks described in this protocol.
- Please clarify whether all other bacterial strains listed are susceptible to commonly used antibiotics.
Title: “Virus-insect interactions of arthropod-borne viruses and their vectors”
NIH Guidelines: Sections III-E-1 and III-F-1 and VIII-E.
Meeting Comments: This protocol involves in vitro and in vivo studies to investigate the interactions between various viruses and arthropod vectors. Research activities include infection of insect and mammalian cell cultures, infection of arthropods with multiple viral agents, and RNA interference (RNAi) studies in insects to evaluate factors influencing virus-vector interactions and transmission. The project does not meet DURC/P3CO criteria, and appropriate biosafety procedures and mitigation plans are in place.
o The Committee voted unanimously to approve the motion.
- Please clarify the term "knocked-down fly" as used in this section.
- Please provide additional details regarding the zoonotic agents described in this protocol.
- Please clarify whether all other bacterial strains listed are susceptible to commonly used antibiotics.
Title: “Tick species and tick-borne pathogen (e.g. virus, bacteria, protozoa) surveillance in Kansas”
NIH Guidelines: Sections III-E-1, III-F-1 and VIII-E.
Meeting Comments: The project aims to characterize tick distribution in Kansas, identify pathogens carried by ticks, and evaluate tick excretory fluids for the presence of pathogen genetic material. Field-collected ticks will be identified, processed for nucleic acid extraction and sequencing. No pathogen isolation or propagation will be performed. The project does not meet DURC/P3CO criteria, and appropriate biosafety procedures and mitigation plans are in place.
o The Committee voted unanimously to approve the motion.
- Throughout the protocol, where the responses reference the SOP, please provide a summary of the information to answer the protocol section and use the SOP only for additional details.
- Please provide additional information regarding the human host, including the potential disease(s) associated with the pathogens under study and any relevant signs or symptoms that may occur following a tick bite.
- Please describe the field collection methods in detail, including clothing, PPE, and personal protective measures that will be used to mitigate exposure during tick collection. Please clearly identify which protective measures are required for all personnel (e.g., permethrin-treated clothing, long-sleeved shirts, long pants tucked into socks, use of EPA-registered repellents, routine tick checks, etc.) and describe how exceptions, if any, will be handled. For reference, please review the CDC Tick Surveillance Guide, Personal Protection for Persons Conducting Tick Surveillance (page 19).
- Please clarify what precautions or procedures will be followed after field clothing is placed in an airtight Ziplock-type bag, including how the bagged clothing will be handled, transported, treated, or laundered before reuse. Additionally, because DEET, picaridin, and 0.5% permethrin are being made available to personnel for optional use during fieldwork, the IBC recommends implementing a declination form for personnel who choose not to use the available repellents and/or permethrin-treated clothing as part of the fieldwork procedures.
- Please justify conducting these experiments in a BSL-2 laboratory rather than in an ACL-2 insectary. Please review the Arthropod Containment Guidelines (pages 161–164) and reference the applicable sections to support your justification. Including the secondary containment measures that will be implemented (e.g., water moat/water bath, sticky tape barriers, tick counts before and after procedures, and other measures to prevent arthropod escape).
Other Business: none
Adjourn: The meeting was adjourned at 10:15 a.m.