Team:CSU CHINA/Safety

Human_Practices

Safety

1. General

In Central South University, our school issues the laws of laboratory safety rules governing the biosafety, which follows the rules of Biological safety management regulations for pathogenic microorganisms Laboratory issued by China State Council.

2. Biosafety rules and documents

Our lab follows China National Institute of Pathogenic Microorganisms Biosafety Management and Central South University Laboratory Safety Rules as these aspects below.

  • Lab access and rules (those 3 rules below are specially supposed to remember for daily lab life)

    1. Eating and drinking are not allowed inside the working area.
    2. Anyone who is participating in the experiment is supposed to wear lab coats and protective goggles.
    3. You are not allowed to wear protective goggles to touch any resting area or somewhere outside the lab.
  • Correct disposal of biological wastes and lab consumables
  • Differences between biosafety levels
  • Biosafety equipment and chemical safety(such as biosafety cabinets and chemical fume hood)
  • Fire, water and electrical safety(We have fixed using time of large-scale scientific instruments and for sterilization)
  • Disinfection and sterilization
  • Transport rules
  • Emergency procedures
  • Responsible individuals (such as lab or departmental specialist or institutional biosafety officer)
  • Good microbial technique (such as lab practices)

3. Lab Biosafety level

Our team were working mainly in the BSL-1 lab at the Department of Life Science, Central South University for our project.

4. Biosafety Training

All the team members followed a lab safety training and signed relevant safety documents prior to entering the lab at Central South University. A thorough and comprehensive lab safety training was provided by the biosafety offices of the universities and the departmental specialists. And the biosafety training also has an Internet-based test and values 1 academic point for bachelor students.

5. Personal protective equipment

Team members were equipped with lab coats, protective goggles, and disposable nitrile gloves. No other protective equipment was necessary according to the lab biosafety guidelines.

6. Work area

7. Specific risks

Our project does not include gene drives, nor have we worked with animals. All species names (including strains) have been listed in the safety form.

The Synechocystis sp. strains PCC 6803 we use in this project are 1st-Risk-Group organisms which has little safety risk to the environment or pets.

Our project is generally performed with very low risks, as no pathogenic bacteria or hazardous chemical reagent is used. However, some common risks are still inevitable, for example, get contaminated while using nucleic dye, get burned while using spirit lamp especially in the super clean bench, also some reagents are toxic like DMSO, ethidium