Team:NCTU Formosa/safety

SAFETY OF OUR PROJECT

Our project is to create a regulation system of gene expression in bacteria, only create new biobrick without producing any biosynthesis product. So it won't have new risks if we used our part in commerce or industry. We had discussed with National Chiao Tung University Environmental Protection and Safety Center.The committee agree us executing our project without any comment.

ORGANISMS WE USED

NEW OR MODIFIED CODING REGION WE USED

SAFETY PROCEDURE IN OUR LABORATORY

This year, we use E.coli DH5α, a bacteria that classified under Risk Group 1, as our classis. It's a non-hazardous and non-infective bacteria that generally used in labs and biological experiments. The safety problem of products in the project is also concerned. In our design, E.coli is engineered to produce various fluorescence proteins and some plant hormones, which are harmless to human and environment. Even so, we follow the standard safety procedure to guarantee a safe experiment environment without dangers. To sum up, we have confidence that our project will not raise any biosafety issue.

Researcher's Safety

In order to protect our researchers from infecting engineered organisms and contaminating the samples, we strictly require all the researchers to follow the rules:

1. Every participant have read Safety Guidelines for Biosafety Level 1 to Level 3 Laboratory , established by National Chiao Tung University - Environmental Protection and Safety Center.
2. Researchers are fully trained before doing experiments individually. Teaching assistants will guide and supervise the experiments at the first few times.
3. Researchers doing experiment must wear on lab coat and gloves.
4. No experiments is allowed to be done outside the biosafety cabinet, in order to minimize the possibility of releasing Genetically Modified Organisms (GMOs) .
5. Before and after conducting experiments, 70% alcohol is applied to sterilize hands, equiptments, platform, or anything direct contact E.coli.
6. Well designed hazard dealing protocol is applied in all labs in NCTU

Pubilc Safety

To ensure that the engineered organisms will not leak out and contaminate the environment, all wastes which contacted these bacteria should be sterilized, collected to specific trash can before disposal. We also set up a strict door access system, preventing miscellaneous people acquiring E.coli. In fact, E.coli we used in lab is less competitive to wild type, because of the lost of the ability to form biofilms and to thrive in the intestine.

Figure.1 Sterilizer
All wastes should be sterilized

Institutional Biosafety Committee

[http://esc.nctu.edu.tw/web_e/index.php National Chiao Tung University - Environmental Protection and Safety Center (NCTU ESC)]