Just off the coast of Germany is a unique island home to some of humanity’s smallest yet most formidable enemies: the foes we’ve mentioned include the pathogens Ebola, Nipah, influenza, Yersinia pestis, rabies, and Rift Valley fever that cause the most dangerous infectious diseases.
For obvious reasons, this island is known as the “plague island” (Plague Island). But officially we are talking about Riems Island, near the city of Greifswald in the northern tip of Germany. The institute located on this island is called the Friedrich Loeffler Institute (FLI).
FLI in Riems is one of 59 biosafety level-4 (BSL-4) laboratories that are allowed to conduct experiments on some of the most dangerous pathogens known to science. The FLI is particularly notable for being one of the few BSL-4 laboratories capable of large-scale animal studies, and for risky work when dealing with zoonotic diseases that can potentially spread from species to species. Animals can be infected here, and work is being done to better understand how diseases take root, spread, and most importantly, how to prevent them. Two other facilities around the world where this type of animal research is possible are in Winnipeg, Canada and Geelong, Australia.
Strict security is enforced on the island.
The entire island is currently closed to the public and can only be accessed by a bridge. Parts of the island are low risk and contain typical scientific research facilities and even homes for researchers. However, some high-risk areas are kept under tight control.
Researchers wear a full protective HAZMAT suit, supplied with filtered air through a hose, after entering high security buildings. The garment is inflated like a balloon, which reduces the chance of pathogens entering the garment if it ruptures.
The building is completely isolated from the outside world, has multiple airlocks and is kept under negative pressure to allow air to flow in, not out. Any air or water leaving the building is subjected to intense filtration and sterilization.
In addition to being home to some very unique and risky animal research, this laboratory complex on the island of Reims is one of the oldest virology research facilities of its kind. The institute was founded in 1910 by Friedrich Loeffler to study foot and mouth disease, an infectious viral disease that affects cattle and other animals raised as livestock such as sheep, goats and pigs.
became one of the leading pioneers of foot and mouth research in the 20th century, but since then, foot and mouth, African Swine Fever, Ebola, Nipah, Rift Valley fever, bovine spongiform encephalopathy, blue tongue, has expanded its portfolio to study a number of deadly diseases, including rabies, Q fever, influenza, Yersinia pestis and – of course – SARS-CoV-2, the virus responsible for COVID-19. Alongside these high-profile pathogens, lesser known infectious diseases specific to fish, molluscs, crustaceans and bees are also being studied.
Understanding zoonotic viruses may sound risky, but the COVID-19 pandemic has been an important reminder of the risks posed by infectious viruses and the need to understand how diseases spread from animals to humans. In light of the COVID-19 pandemic, FLI President Professor Thomas C Mettenleiter has chaired an expert panel designed to reduce epidemic risk by increasing our understanding of the factors affecting the early recognition and spread of pathogens from animals to humans and to global health.
You can watch the documentary about the island prepared by Deutsche Welle right below…
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