Team:ETH Zurich/lab/safety

From 2014.igem.org

(Difference between revisions)
Line 39: Line 39:
=== Risks to the safety and health of the general public and the environment ===
=== Risks to the safety and health of the general public and the environment ===
-
All experiments involving live bacteria were conducted in an environment designed to contain bacteria. Therefore, there is no direct contact with the environment outside the laboratory and therefore, together with the fact that the involved bacteria are of biosafety level 1, our project provides no remarkable risk to the general public. Since all team members are following Good Laboratory Practices (GLP), we are working on a good basis to prevent the unintended release and spread of bacterial cultures.
+
All experiments involving live bacteria were conducted in an environment designed to contain bacteria. Therefore, there is no direct contact with the environment outside the laboratory and therefore, together with the fact that the involved bacteria are of biosafety level 1, our project provides no remarkable risk to the general public. Since all team members are following Good Laboratory Practices (GLP), we are working on a good basis to prevent the unintended release and spread of bacterial cultures. Safety measures like autoclaving and protective equipment will mitigate the risks to the environment.
-
<br>
+
-
<br>
+
-
Nevertheless there is always a risk of releasing genetically modified organisms into the environment, especially in the case of an accident. The used lab ''E. coli'' strains are unlikely survive outside the lab. In the rare case that the strains would survive, transfer of genetic material between the GMOs and other bacteria could take place. However, since our constructs do not involve any toxic or harmful components they are not expected to pose a direct threat to the environment.
+
-
<br>
+
-
<br>
+
-
In our project antibiotic resistance genes are used as selection tools and as a responsible team we ensure a proper disposal by autoclaving. Further we do not use any antibiotics that are used in clinics. Hence, a release by accident would most probably not lead to the spread of antibiotic resistant strains that would pose a problem to the medical use of antibiotics.
+
-
<br>
+
-
<br>
+
-
Lab coat and gloves are only worn inside the laboratory to minimize the risk of spreading bacteria in the environment.
+
-
The bacteria used for our experiments are expected to be incapable of surviving in the environment outside the lab and even in the rarest case they do survive; they do not possess any destructive potential. The particular strain cannot survive outside the lab since it is engineered to be weak and dependent on a lab nutrient mix (e.g. LB). We have also observed that the bacteria lose our plasmids over time when plated without antibiotic as the expression of recombinant proteins has an unproductive effect on the cell's resources. We are using standard and well-characterized biobricks, which do not have the potential to combine in dangerous ways. As the organisms used by our team belong to the Risk Level 1 they are highly unlikely to cause harm to adult humans or animals. Therefore we see little or no risk of our microorganisms spreading.
+
-
<br>
+
-
<br>
+
-
Additionally, measures are taken to prevent the release of the microorganisms into the environment. All materials contaminated with bacteria is autoclaved at 120 degrees Celsius by trained faculty staff. Harmful chemicals are collected and disposed separately.
+
-
<br>
+
-
<br>
+
-
Safety measures like autoclaving and protective equipment will mitigate the risks to the environment.
+
<html></article></html>
<html></article></html>

Revision as of 12:39, 17 October 2014

iGEM ETH Zurich 2014