The Brooksby Building will be a self-contained, stand-alone, large animal experimental facility designated to accommodate ‘in vivo’ studies involving ‘high containment’ pathogens of livestock, such as foot-and-mouth disease virus (FMDV) as well as pathogens that can spread from livestock to humans. The facility will also have sufficient flexibility to house small animals for ‘in vivo’ studies.
The building will have engineering features to ensure the highest international standards are achieved and that a world leading environment for both staff and animals is delivered.
The Brooksby Building is named after John Brooksby CBE, a remarkable researcher who joined the then FMD research institute at Pirbright in 1939; spent years developing diagnostics methods and vaccines for FMD and swine vesicular disease and helped build the Institute’s international reputation. 2018 marked the 60 year anniversary since laboratories at Pirbright were designated the World Reference Laboratory for foot-and-mouth disease virus.
The Brooksby Building is crucial to the successful delivery of the Institute’s science and forms a key component of the overall site development of the Pirbright campus.