Biosafety.html

"Small Mistakes in Biosafety could have terrible global consequences"

by-Thomas Inglesky

        (centre of biosecurity at UNIVERSITY OF PITTSBURGH)

 

Biosafety refers to individual safeguards designed to protect laboratory personnel, as well as the surrounding environment and community.The biosafety protocols are divided into"BIOLOGICAL SAFETY LEVELS(BSL), which are series of protection relegated to autoclave related activities that takeplace in particular labs.

These levels are generally standardized across the world, however their implementation varies from country to country, labs to labs, organization to organizations.

These biosafety levels are ranked from 1 to 4, on the basis of agents or organisms that are being researched or worked on, in any given laboratory settings and are determined by the following-Risks related to containment, Severity of infection, Transmissibility, Nature of the work conducted, Origin of the microbe, Agent in question,Route of exposure

BIOSAFETY IN INDIA-

IN India, a three tier mechanism comprising InstitutionalBiosafetyCommittees (IBSC) at the Institute/ company; the ReviewCommitteeonGeneticManipulation (RCGM) in the Department of Biotechnology; and the GeneticEngineeringApprovalCommittee (GEAC) in the Ministry of Environment & Forests (MoE&F), do analysis for granting approval for research and development activities on recombinant DNA products, environmental release of genetically engineered (GE)crops and monitoring and evaluation of research activities involving recombinant DNA technology has been established.

 In India, GMOs and products thereof are regulated as per the “Rules for themanufacture, use/import/export and storage of hazardous microorganisms/ geneticallyengineered organisms or cells, 1989” (commonly referred as Rules, 1989) notified bythe Ministry of Environment and Forests (MoEF), Government of India under theEnvironment (Protection) Act (1986). These rules are implemented by MoEF, theDepartment of Biotechnology (DBT), Ministry of Science and Technology and theState Governments through the six competent authorities notified under the Ruleswhich are as follows:

i.                    Recombinant DNA Advisory Committee (RDAC)

ii.                  Institutional Biosafety Committee (IBSC)

iii.                Review Committee on Genetic Manipulation (RCGM)

iv.                Genetic Engineering Appraisal Committee (GEAC)

v.                  State Biotechnology Coordination Committee (SBCC)

vi.                District Level Committee (DLC).

While the RDAC has advisory in function, IBSC, RCGM, and GEAC

Following steps are involved in the analysis of a Genetically Modified Cell -

 

 

 

BIOSAFETY AT DAYALBAGH EDUCATIONAL INSTITUTE-

We at Dayalbagh Educational Institute understand the importance of Biosafety and strongly believe in its enforcement, therefore our lab works and experiments are carried out under strict biosafety precautions.

Before commencing our wet lab experiments we had received a training sessions of two days on safety and precautions to be maintained while handling the Instruments, glassware’s and  reagents in a laboratory.

For the iGEM project we are working with the E.colistrain (DH5 α and BL-21), which falls under BSL-1(Biosafety level 1). Therefore all BSL-1 are implemented and followed during our laboratory workings

Sterilization: Clean, Dirt free environment is essential for getting good results. We used sanitizers and 70% ethanol for cleaning the platform.

Toxicity Risk: Ethidium Bromide is the most commonly used staining dye for DNA, is highly toxic as mutagens. It may potentially cause carcinogenic effects. So for our team project we had decided to use a less toxic dye “GEL RED” purchased from GCC biotech.

Handling of equipment: We used all necessary equipment’s such as Autoclave, U-V trans-illuminator, Biosafety Cabinet under the guidance of well-trained Lab-Personnel’s.

WASTE MANAGEMENT FOR OUR WORK-

Different trash containers are available in the lab:

One for biological waste (this waste will be autoclaved before being thrown out). Infection materials are also decontaminated prior to disposal, generally through the use of an autoclave.

One for common waste,special container for chemicals, Special container for waste broth and cultures

BASIC  RULES  FOLLOWED IN OUR LABORATORY:

In the Biosafety level 1 laboratory, personnel is allowed to work with low risk microbes that pose little or no threat of infection in healthy adults. Under BSL-1 following practices are permitted-

·            Mechanical pipetting only (no mouth pipetting allowed)

·         Safe sharps handling

·         Avoidance of splashes or aerosols

·         Daily decontamination of all work surfaces when work is complete

·         Hand washing

·         Prohibition of food, drink and smoking materials in lab setting

·         Personal protective equipment, such as; eye protection, gloves and a lab coat or gown

·         Biohazard signs

Apart from following the basic guidelines, our team takes security and safety measures at the highest priority. All members had to wear clean Lab Coat during the practical sessions. Team members had to wear lab sleepers, glove, goggles and mask according to demand of work. We also ensure proper disposal of gloves, used pipette tips, Eppendorf tubes in a separate bio hazardous container.

IGEM 2017 -TEAM DEI ensures all the protocols and safety measures are followed and implemented during team's lab work.