Safety

In order to further strengthen the construction of IGEM experiment safety and improve the level of laboratory safety management, all our IGEM members have carried out laboratory safety assessments. Since the main target of our products is food, and food is an indispensable necessity in our daily life, the experimental grade requirements are relatively strict.

Almost all the genes regulated by the transcription factors used in our experiment need to be expressed in an anaerobic environment, which is no different from ordinary E. coli in common conditions. Hydrogels are excellent at immobilizing E. coli. E. coli are challenging to store and will die after a while without the support of nutrients.

We will use low-risk organisms (DH5-alpha and BL21) in our experiments. To avoid creating aerosol, we conduct most experiments in the biosafety cabinet and seal the culture medium when taking it out of the biosafety cabinet. Since our product contains a genetically engineered organism, we will employ specific biocontainment measures to limit its spread. Explicitly speaking, immobilized E.coli are in their dormant states when being coated on the sensor. During experiments, we will use personal protective equipment to protect ourselves. All flammable materials are stored on a separate shelf, which can only be opened by people who have passed the laboratory safety examination. Infectious medical waste will be placed in a separate trash can and deposited at an approved disposal plant. Emergency equipment like the eyewash and the shower are examined to be well-functional and deposited right next to the laboratory. Corrosive agents are locked tightly in a unique cabinet with labels.