The State Research Center of Virology and Biotechnology VECTOR, also known as the Vector Institute, is a highly sophisticated biological research center in Koltsovo, Novosibirsk Oblast, Russia. It is roughly analogous to both the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention and the US Army Chemical and Biological Defense Command. It has research facilities and capabilities for all levels of Biological Hazard, CDC Levels 1-4. It is one of two official repositories for the now-eradicated smallpox virus, and is part of the system of laboratories known as the Biopreparat. Recently the facility has been upgraded and secured using the most modern cameras, motion sensors, fences, and biohazard containment systems. Its relative seclusion make security an easier task. Since its inception there has been an elite army regiment guarding the facility. The facility has, at least until Soviet times, been a nexus for biological warfare research, though the nature of any ongoing research in this area is uncertain. Many of the researchers at the institution are courted by other research institutions around the globe.
