Team:UT-Dallas/temp

Safety

Before beginning work on the project, every lab member underwent training with the Advisor on various safety protocols and proper techniques to be followed in lab, including how to properly handle biological organisms and parts, how to use equipment safely, measures to keep the lab area clean and precautions when using carcinogenic materials such as ethidium bromide. Students were advised to wear long pants, close-toes shoes, and appropriate personal protective equipment. This training followed the requirements outlined in the laboratory safety training requirement of UT Dallas, which can be found at http://www.utdallas.edu/research/orc/lab_safety_training.

E. coli strain DH5a was acquired from NEB and used as a chassis throughout the project. The species falls under Risk Group 1 as classified by the American Biological Safety Association (ABSA) and can potentially cause skin and eye irritation in humans. Had our project progressed to further stages, the use of Vibrio cholerae would have been required, which is in Risk Group 2 and poses greater risk to humans, requiring more precaution in handling it.