Team:Copenhagen/Safety

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<b>1.    Would any of your project ideas raise safety issues in terms of:<br>
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<br><strong>Safety Procedures followed thoroughly by the Copenhagen iGEM Team:</strong> </font>
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Researcher safety?:</b><br> We see no such risks to our safety and health in the lab. All research with Genetically Modified Organisms (GMO’s) is contained in a GMO-class 1 laboratory at the Faculty of Life Sciences, at University of Copenhagen. All processes and methods are carried out only after training and/or under the supervision of an instructor to ensure all safety protocols are maintained. In addition every team member underwent safety and waste disposal training before performing any experiments in the lab. Furthermore, the team will be supervised throughout the project by more experienced research scientist. As <i>E. coli</i> DH5&alpha; or E. Cloni and cyanobacteria strain Synechococcus elongatus can be infectious to humans and the rules set by the lab should be followed thoroughly.
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<b>Public safety?:</b><br>
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There should not be any risks for the general public as our project is intended to function as a fundamental research project and a idea. It is not the purpose to bring either the <i>E. coli</i> cells or the cyanobacteria strain Synechococcus elongatus out of the GMO class 1 lab. All experiments with our BioBricks and use of GMO’s will occur in a contained laboratory environment, with established biosafety and biosecurity requirements. The plasmids where are constructing contain a resistance gene and it is important that the organisms are kept in the laboratorium.
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<b>Environmental safety?:</b><br>
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Environmental safety is ensured as all of our experiments are contained and disposed safely following to both international (WHO) and Danish (Arbejdstilsynet) laws.
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The strains that we are working with are generally considered safe to work with. No GMO will intentionally be released into the environment during the course of this project. In case of an accidental release of our genetically modified E.coli and cyanobacteria strain, the added antibiotic resistance gene will quickly be lost to natural selection and therefore not be a problem. The plasmids containing luxCDABE could be transferred to other bacterias, but it will not be favorable for the organism to have the plasmid as it then have to use a lot of energy and reduction equivalents. Furthermore all the genes and promotors are naturally occurring in the nature.
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<b>2.   Do any of the new BioBrick parts (or devices) that you made this year raise any safety issues?</b><br>
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<b>1.</b> Needless traffic in and out of the laboratory must be limited. All visitors must wear a lab coat. Visitor lab coats are located at the entrance to the laboratory.
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No. None of the BioBricks we have created raises any specific safety issues. Any safety issues discovered will naturally be fully documented in the Parts Registry.  
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<b>3.   Is there a local biosafety group, committee, or review board at your institution?</b><br>
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Yes, the institution Faculty of Life Sciences, University of Copenhagen has their own biosafety rules <a href="http://www.life.ku.dk/Maalgruppe/medarbejdere/CampusService/arbejdsmiljoe.aspx" style="text-decoration:none; color:blue;"> Read more.</a>
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<b>2.</b> The laboratory must be kept clean and tidy and in good order. After work, all surfaces must be cleared and decontaminated by the user. In case of GMO spill, immediate decontamination must be carried out.
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There is a biosafety board in our laboratory at the Faculty of Life Sciences, University of Copenhagen (biosafety). All protocols set forth by the biosafety board are being followed by the Copenhagen iGEM Team. The committee is familiar with our project and our presence in the laboratory. The only condition for our lab work is that one of our advisers is at the institute at all times.
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<b>4.   Do you have any other ideas how to deal with safety issues that could be useful for future iGEM competitions? How could parts, devices and systems be made even safer through biosafety engineering?</b><br>
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<b>3.</b> All biological waste, including non-GMO waste, is discarded in special bins labelled “Biohazard” and “GMO”.  The material is sealed before being transported for autoclaving. Containers with liquid waste must be clearly labelled with autoclave tape labelled “GMO-waste”.
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The open source idea is a appealing but it is important to prevent misuse. Scientists using the library should be registered. Additionally biobricks should be tested before sending it out the next year. Sequencing results should be analyzed before the biobricks are dispatched to make sure that you get what you ordered and avoid getting other genes than you ordered.  
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We experienced that a luxCDABE (BBa_J32007) cassette biobrick was not the gene present in the 384 microwell plate from iGEM but an E. coli surface protein gene. This could have been another hazardous gene that could have been dangerous to work with.  
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<b>4</b>. Pipetting by mouth is absolutely forbidden.
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<b>5.</b> It is absolutely forbidden to bring any kind of food or drink into the laboratory.
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<b>6.</b> Personnel must wash the hands after having been in contact with any type of organisms, GMO or non-GMO, before leaving the laboratory.
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<b>7.</b> Special caution must be taken to minimise aerosol production.
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<b>8.</b> All experiments in the laboratory must be conducted according to this procedure. The procedures are also valid for experiments including recombinant nucleic acids.
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<b>9.</b> Transport of GMO-material between classified areas must be performed using a closed container clearly labelled ”Biohazard” and/or ”GMO”.
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<b>10.</b> If the laboratory is no longer to be used for GMO work, down-classification is carried out after main cleaning.<br><br>
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Coming Soon
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Latest revision as of 00:33, 27 September 2012

Safety

1. Would any of your project ideas raise safety issues in terms of:
Researcher safety?:
We see no such risks to our safety and health in the lab. All research with Genetically Modified Organisms (GMO’s) is contained in a GMO-class 1 laboratory at the Faculty of Life Sciences, at University of Copenhagen. All processes and methods are carried out only after training and/or under the supervision of an instructor to ensure all safety protocols are maintained. In addition every team member underwent safety and waste disposal training before performing any experiments in the lab. Furthermore, the team will be supervised throughout the project by more experienced research scientist. As E. coli DH5α or E. Cloni and cyanobacteria strain Synechococcus elongatus can be infectious to humans and the rules set by the lab should be followed thoroughly.
Public safety?:
There should not be any risks for the general public as our project is intended to function as a fundamental research project and a idea. It is not the purpose to bring either the E. coli cells or the cyanobacteria strain Synechococcus elongatus out of the GMO class 1 lab. All experiments with our BioBricks and use of GMO’s will occur in a contained laboratory environment, with established biosafety and biosecurity requirements. The plasmids where are constructing contain a resistance gene and it is important that the organisms are kept in the laboratorium.
Environmental safety?:
Environmental safety is ensured as all of our experiments are contained and disposed safely following to both international (WHO) and Danish (Arbejdstilsynet) laws. The strains that we are working with are generally considered safe to work with. No GMO will intentionally be released into the environment during the course of this project. In case of an accidental release of our genetically modified E.coli and cyanobacteria strain, the added antibiotic resistance gene will quickly be lost to natural selection and therefore not be a problem. The plasmids containing luxCDABE could be transferred to other bacterias, but it will not be favorable for the organism to have the plasmid as it then have to use a lot of energy and reduction equivalents. Furthermore all the genes and promotors are naturally occurring in the nature.

2. Do any of the new BioBrick parts (or devices) that you made this year raise any safety issues?
No. None of the BioBricks we have created raises any specific safety issues. Any safety issues discovered will naturally be fully documented in the Parts Registry.

3. Is there a local biosafety group, committee, or review board at your institution?
Yes, the institution Faculty of Life Sciences, University of Copenhagen has their own biosafety rules Read more.
There is a biosafety board in our laboratory at the Faculty of Life Sciences, University of Copenhagen (biosafety). All protocols set forth by the biosafety board are being followed by the Copenhagen iGEM Team. The committee is familiar with our project and our presence in the laboratory. The only condition for our lab work is that one of our advisers is at the institute at all times.

4. Do you have any other ideas how to deal with safety issues that could be useful for future iGEM competitions? How could parts, devices and systems be made even safer through biosafety engineering?
The open source idea is a appealing but it is important to prevent misuse. Scientists using the library should be registered. Additionally biobricks should be tested before sending it out the next year. Sequencing results should be analyzed before the biobricks are dispatched to make sure that you get what you ordered and avoid getting other genes than you ordered. We experienced that a luxCDABE (BBa_J32007) cassette biobrick was not the gene present in the 384 microwell plate from iGEM but an E. coli surface protein gene. This could have been another hazardous gene that could have been dangerous to work with.

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