Team:KUAS Korea/Safety
Safety
Introduction
Since synthetic biology generally deals with genetically modified organisms, many problems can arise in terms of biosafety, and therefore, careful consideration is required.
In order to verify the contents of the project in terms of biosafety, we identified issues that could be problematic in terms of biosafety in the design of the experiment, and received additional study and feedback through dialogue with Professor Sang-pal Lee.
Safety check of our project
We designed projects and experiments with biosafety in mind to avoid problems. In our project, all experiments were designed to be done in-vitro and without use living cells. Usually, the biggest problem in biosafety is the possibility of LMO leakage and it affecting the external ecosystem. Our project does not involve LMOs. So the safety form we sent to the committee was well accepted. It has a great advantage in this respect. The sticker product also solved the biosafety problem because the system only works with RNA.
Then, the only problem with our system is the safety of other chemicals. Here is a instruction.
The Biosafety issues related to the chemicals are described at the end of this page.
1) Production
- No special genetically modified organisms are used
- No special toxic chemicals are used
2) Usage
-instructions
(1) Rinse well if the liquid contents get into your eyes
(2) If you are wearing contact lenses, wear it off then rinse your eyes
-precautions
Some of the liquid contents may...
(1) Cause skin irritation
(2) Cause serious eye irritation
(3) Cause respiratory irritation
(4) Be very toxic to aquatic life
(5) Cause damage to organs <or state all organs affected, if known> <state route of exposure if it is conclusively proven that no other routes of exposure cause the hazard>
3) Disposals
-instructions
(1) P501: Dispose of contents/container to...
Biosafety Interview with Professor Lee Sang-pal
Biosafety's primary goal is to produce safe products that are not hazardous to human health and health care, also to ensure that laboratory researchers, developers with other related personnel are not exposed to danger during the production process of such products. In other words, the aim is to pursue comprehensive safety.
On Thursday, September 24th, 2020, we conducted an online meeting with Professor Lee Sang-pal of the Graduate School of Science and Technology Policy at Hanyang University on the theme of Biosafety. We briefed Professor Lee Sang-pal on our project and asked for advice on KUAS' activities.
The project uses artificially synthesized genetic materials such as RNA and DNA, but they do not seem to violate current bioethics or safety laws (although further consideration is needed because they may be provided for in other laws).
The Bioethics and Safety Acts prevents human and human materials from being researched, and prevents human dignity and value from being hazarded when dealing with embryonic genes. He said that human materials are defined as ”blood clots, plasma chromosome, DNA(Deoxyribonucleic acid), RNA(Ribonucleic acid), proteins, etc.”(Article2 of the Act). Instead, we received the opinion that in order to commercialize and use our project, we need to examine the laws on pharmaceutical safety in more detail (e.g., Act on testing and inspection in the food and drug industry and Regulation on drug safety, etc.).
For more information, please click the following link
Safety guidelines for each chemical component
Wet capsule contains Tris, MgCl₂, KCl, NaCl. We identified potential risks of these chemicals to ensure safety of users. Here we list the safety guidelines for each substance contained in Thermopatch. The safety guidelines were acquired from MSDS(Materials Safety Data Sheet) from Korea Occupational Safety and Health Agency
Tris (CAS No :77-86-1 UN No : KE No :KE-01403 EU No :201-064-4) may cause skin irritation(H315), serious eye irritation(H319), and respiratory irritation(H335). Tris and its container should be disposed in accordance with local regulations(P501). The precaution of Tris is “warning” and the pictogram is as follows.
With MgCl₂ (CAS No :7786-30-3 UN No : KE No :KE-22691 EU No :232-094-6), no special precautions are suggested. KCl (CAS No :7447-40-7 UN No : KE No :KE-29086 EU No :231-211-8) may causes serious eye irritation(H319), respiratory irritation(H335), damage to organs(H337). KCl and its container should be disposed in accordance with local regulations(P501). The precaution of KCl is “warning” and the pictograms of KCl are as follows.
NaCl (CAS No :7647-14-5 UN No : KE No :KE-31387 EU No :231-598-3) may cause genetic defects(H340), damage to organs(H373), and is suspected of damaging fertility or the unborn child(H361). It is also very toxic to aquatic life(H400). Nacl and its container should be disposed in accordance with local regulations(P501). The precautions of NaCl is “warning” and the pictogram of Tris are as follows.
Reference: https://msds.kosha.or.kr/kcic/msdssearchMsds.do