Team:WashU StLouis/Safety
Our Lab Space
Officially, our team operates under the Energy, Environmental, and Chemical Engineering (EECE) Department at Washington University in St. Louis. The majority of our wet lab work is done in the Tang and Zhang Labs, both of which are Biosafety Level 1 (BSL 1). Both labs are equipped with open bench space and biosafety cabinets, and they share 4, 30, and 37 degree rooms for cell cultures and plates. The Zhang lab designates a specific area and enforces safety measures for work involving the use of Ethidium Bromide (such as in gel electrophoresis).
Personal Protective Equipment
Our PPE generally falls in line with the requirements of most BSL 1 laboratories. This means our attire entering the lab includes long pants, appropriate closed-toe shoes, and shirts with sleeves. Once we enter the lab, we also put on fitting nitrile gloves, lab coats, and goggles/glasses when necessary.
Oversight
The development of our project is overseen by Dr. Janie Brennan and Eugene Kim, both of whom we formally meet biweekly. During these meetings, Dr. Brennan makes sure that the direction of our research is environmentally safe. In the wet lab, the Zhang Lab and Tang Lab graduate students, including Eugene, oversee our work and make sure that we are conducting our experiments safely.
