Safety Hub

• SAFETY HUB
• Overview
• Requirements
• Help!
• Risk Groups and Biosafety Levels
• Tutorial
• Safety Committee
• Your Responsibility
• White List
• Risk Group Guide
• Risk Groups
• How do I...?
• Lab Biosafety Levels
• About Our Lab
     (due June 23)
• Check-In
     (throughout summer / Oct 1)
• Safety Form
     (due July 21, Sept 1)

This page is the central hub for information about safety in iGEM 2014. From the sidebar on the left, you can access all pages related to safety for the 2014 competition.

We are developing and improving iGEM's safety practices each year. The guidelines and forms are different from last year, so please read carefully!!

Timeline

Now: Read the Safety Hub and learn about safety in iGEM. Ask questions by emailing <safety AT igem DOT org>. Now - Jamboree: Complete Check-Ins and receive approval before acquiring and using certain materials in your lab. You must Check-In for any organism or part that is not on the White List. Now - Wiki Freeze: Edit the Safety page on your wiki to tell us about what you're doing June 9: Submit the About Our Lab form. June 30: Submit the Preliminary Version of the Safety Form. Over the summer: Participate in Virtual Open Office Hours to ask questions and discuss safety topics (exact dates to be announced). September 1: Submit the Final Version of the Safety Form. October: Wiki freeze (exact date to be determined) October 30 - November 3: GIANT JAMBOREE!

Welcome to the Safety Hub! My name is Kelly, and I'm here to help you with any questions or problems you might have about safety in iGEM. (I also like to talk about Policy & Practices!) You can contact me by email (safety AT igem DOT org), Skype text chat (kelly_igem), or Twitter (@Kelly_iGEM).

Overview

First of all, you are responsible for your own safety. Throughout your project, and after we approve any of your forms, you are responsible for living up to the trust we have placed in you to handle potentially dangerous materials safely. Good judgment and proper practices are always necessary. The Safety Committee is here to help you, and to teach you to help yourself. We are not a substitute for the biosafety regulations of your country, or the lab safety guidelines of your university/institution.

This year, there are three main tasks you should do: the About Our Lab form, the Check-Ins, and the Safety Form.

• The About Our Lab form is short and easy; it is due at the beginning of summer, June 9.
• Check-Ins are also short and easy, and must be completed before you acquire or use certain materials in your lab -- that means you may complete them at any time until the Jamboree.
• The Safety Form is longer. We ask that you complete a Preliminary Version by June 30 (answer as many questions as you can, and leave blank the questions you cannot answer yet). The final version of the Safety Form is not due until the end of summer, September 30.

If your project changes, you can always submit a new version of any form (About Our Lab, Check-In, or Safety Form), even after the deadlines. We encourage you to update your forms if there are significant changes to your project.

The Requirements section, below, gives more details about each form. You can visit the forms by clicking on the links on the left side of this page.

Requirements

About-Our-Lab Form

The About-Our-Lab form is just four questions about your lab facilities and safety practices. Every team should complete an About-Our-Lab form. It is due on June 9, 2014, and it should take much less than one hour to complete.

If you are still searching for a lab space for the summer, and you will not be able to complete the About Our Lab form before the deadline, just email us before June 9 (safety AT igem DOT org), and tell us about your situation.

Check-Ins

The biggest change this year is that we are now requiring Check-Ins before you acquire or use certain materials in your lab. Specifically, you must send us a Check-In for any organism or part that is not on the White List. Once the iGEM Safety Committee has approved your Check-In by email, you may begin working with the material (organism or part). You may Check-In for as many organisms/parts as you wish, and any team member may send a Check-In at any time until the Jamboree.

We understand that many teams began working before the Check-In form was released. If your team has already started working, you are NOT in trouble, and you do NOT need to stop working. Just submit Check-Ins as soon as you can, and in the "Further Comments" field, describe what you have already done.

Safety Form

Every team should complete a Safety Form. This form lets you show us several things:

• That you are working responsibly in an appropriate lab.
• That you are in contact with the biosafety authorities of your university/institution, or of your country.
• That you are working with your advisors to ensure good lab practices.

The Safety Form also helps you think further about safety for your project as it is now, and as it might be in the future. You will complete a Preliminary Version of your safety form by June 30, and then complete a Final Version by September 1.

Any team members can write the Safety Form and save it as a draft, but only an Instructor can submit the form.

Tell us about safety on your wiki!

Your blank wiki includes a "Safety" page. You can customize this page to tell everyone about the ways you're being responsible in your work!

Help!

Ask us questions!

Email safety AT igem DOT org any time, with any questions you might have! We are friendly and available, and we will do our best to answer your questions quickly. ANY team member can ask a question. You do not need to be a team advisor or representative! And you should not fear that your team will suffer consequences simply because you asked us a question. If you are confused or concerned about anything related to safety, please ask!

Virtual Open Office Hours

Participate in our Virtual Open Office Hours via Skype text chat. These office hours are not yet scheduled -- we will announce them here and on the main page when they are scheduled. Virtual Open Office Hours will be hosted by staff member Kelly Drinkwater (please add kelly_igem as a Skype contact).

You will need Skype to participate.

• Click here to get Skype in most countries.
• Click here to get Skype in China.
• After you install Skype, remember to add kelly_igem to your contact list!

Print Resources / Web Links

• The WHO Biosafety Manual is available in PDF format, in several languages. Official versions: English, Français, Español, Português, 中文, Русский. Unofficial translations: Italiano, 日本語, Српски / srpski, Tiếng Việt.
• The NIH Guidelines are a set of United States rules on how to safely work with recombinant or synthetic DNA molecules.
• The CDC has published Biosafety in Microbial and Biomedical Laboratories (BMBL), a comprehensive guide to laboratory safety following U.S. regulations.

Who can answer my questions about lab safety?

The iGEM safety team is a great resource, but it is not the only resource. You probably have many safety experts right next door to you! For example:

• Your faculty advisor or team leaders
• The laboratory manager for the place where you work
• The safety office or Institutional Biosafety Committee at your university/institution
• Members of your local or national government

Risk Groups and Biosafety Levels

Most countries use a four-level system to classify microorganisms according to how dangerous they are to humans:

• Risk Group 1: Low risk. These organisms do not cause disease in healthy adult humans. (However, they might cause disease in young children, elderly people, or people with immune system deficiencies. (Examples: E. coli K-12, Bacillus subtilis)
• Risk Group 2: Moderate risk. These organisms cause disease to humans, but the disease is treatable and preventable. These organisms are unlikely to present a serious hazard to public health or the environment. (Examples: Listeria, Salmonella, Herpes virus. Also, many cell lines such as HeLa contain Risk Group 2 viruses.)
• Risk Group 3: High risk. These organisms cause serious disease in humans. Effective treatments and preventative measures (e.g. vaccinations) are available. (Examples: Brucella, Burkholderia, Yersinia pestis)
• Risk Group 4: Extreme risk. These organisms cause serious or deadly disease in humans, and they can be easily transmitted from one individual to another. Treatments and vaccinations are NOT available. (Examples: Ebola virus, Marburg virus)

Most countries also classify biology laboratories into four levels, based on how stringently they contain the organisms being used inside. Typically, Risk Group 1 organisms will be used in a Level 1 laboratory, Risk Group 2 organisms will be used in a Level 2 laboratory, and so on. Different countries use different names for these levels (for example: BioSafety Level (USA), Containment Level (Canada), Schutzstufe (Germany)). The specific requirements for Levels 1-4 are different in different countries, but this list gives an approximate description of each Level:

Level 1: The most basic safety procedures. Work is done on open benches, and workers wear basic protective equipment like rubber gloves.
Level 2: Moderate safety procedures. Some work is done on open bench tops, but any work that might generate aerosols or splashes is done in biosafety cabinets. Workers may wear additional protective equipment, beyond rubber gloves and lab coats.
Level 3: Strong safety procedures. Work may be done in open-front biosafety cabinets, or in closed-front biosafety cabinets ("glove boxes"). Workers wear extra protective equipment, such as face shields, respirators, or suits that cover the whole body.
Level 4: Maximum safety procedures. Labs have airlocks for entry and exit, and workers take decontaminating showers. Inside the lab, workers wear "space suits" that isolate the whole body, supply clean air to breathe, and maintain air pressure to stop any stray particles from entering.

iGEM participants usually use Level 1 labs. Level 2 labs are used for certain projects. Level 3 and Level 4 labs are not used in iGEM.

Please visit the Risk Group Guide to learn more about Risk Groups and BioSafety Levels.

Tutorial

To learn about biological risk assessment and responsible research, you can watch the two videos below.

Made available through SynBERC. Video by Terry D. Johnson, based on slides by J. Christopher Anderson, both of UC Berkeley Bioengineering.

What Would YOU Do? Safety Scenarios

Who is the iGEM Safety Committee?

• Peter Carr, MIT Lincoln Laboratories
• Kirsten Jacobsen, Public Health Agency of Canada
• Tom Knight, Ginkgo BioWorks
• Todd Kuiken, Synthetic Biology Project, Woodrow Wilson Center
• Claudia Mickelson, MIT Environment, Health, and Safety Office
• Piers Millett, United Nations Biological Weapons Convention ISU
• Kenneth Oye, MIT Program on Emerging Technologies
• Megan Palmer, SynBERC
• Anastasia Rogaeva, Public Health Agency of Canada
• Samuel Yu, Hong Kong University of Science and Technology

Your Responsibility

The iGEM Safety Committee is not a substitute for the biosafety regulations of your country, or for the lab safety guidelines of your university. You and your advisors are responsible for working safely in the laboratory, and for ensuring that your project complies with local laws and university/institutional guidelines. By approving your various forms (About Our Lab form, Check-Ins, Safety Form), the iGEM Safety Committee is only affirming that your team has permission to participate in iGEM. We cannot certify that your project is completely safe (even "safe" organisms, like E. coli K-12, can present some risks!). Likewise, we cannot certify that your project is in compliance with all applicable rules and regulations of your university/institution, local government, national government, and/or international treaties.