The laboratory is an important place for experimental teaching, scientific research and social services. So it is particularly important to ensure the safety of the laboratory. Only when we ensure the safety can we maximize the value of our project. Therefore, we are committed to complying with laboratory safety rules to meet the requirements of iGEM. In addition, during the COVID-19 pandemic, we paid more attention to the health of each team member and take measures to ensure the health of everyone.
(1) You can't work alone in the laboratory without the permission of your teacher.
(2) All experimenters must participate in professional training, learn relevant knowledges, skills and experience, and should be familiar with laboratory safety regulations.
(3) Students are required to wash their hands thoroughly after entering and leaving the lab.
(4) It is forbidden to eat, sleep, place items unrelated to the laboratory, and do not play or run in the laboratory. Experimenters should wear Experimental gowns in the laboratory.
(5) Gloves should be worn at all times when performing microbiological experiments. Students are not allowed to leave the lab after wearing gloves and are not allowed to touch any devices, such as mobile phones.
(6) When carrying out experiments, it is necessary to pay close attention to the progress of the experiment and not to leave without permission. At least two people are required to be present when performing a dangerous experiment.
(7) Keep the laboratory clean and orderly. Clean up or dispose of waste in time. All experimental waste should be collected and disposed of separately and disposed of in the corresponding waste container.
(8) Do not use any of the lab's equipment without the teacher's permission. Any damage to the instrument should be reported immediately.
(9) Flammable, explosive, highly toxic chemical reagents and high-pressure gas cylinders and liquid nitrogen need to be used and stored strictly in accordance with relevant regulations.
(10) After the experiment, the person who leaves the laboratory must check and turn off the water, electricity, gas throughout the laboratory. In principle, the instruments and equipment should not be turned on overnight, and the necessary precautions must be taken if necessary.
| Species | Risk group | The harm to human and environment |
|---|---|---|
| Escherichia coli Top10 | Ⅰ | Escherichia coli Top10 and Escherichia coli BL21(DE3) are commonly used in the laboratory and do little harm to human beings and the environment. |
| Escherichia coli BL21(DE3) | ||
| Gluconacetobacter hansenii ATCC53582 | Ⅰ | G. hansenii ATCC53582 has little harm to human and environment. |
In the laboratory, we must always keep in mind the potential hazards of bacteria. And with its pretreatment operations in mind when entering the lab, the strains of bacteria that will be used in our project are listed below.
(1) Perform bacterial-related experiments in an ultra-clean bench. (2) All biological waste is sterilized by steam sterilization. (3) It is strictly forbidden to release bacteria from the laboratory. (4) After wearing gloves, do not touch any devices and personal items. Keep your hands away from your face, eyes and mouth. Do not leave the laboratory with gloves. (5) If any agent gets into the eyes, rinse the eyes immediately with water. (6) When using sharp objects, sharp points downwards and away from others. (7) If there is any accident, it is necessary to report it to the teacher immediately.
To decrease the risks of environmental release of the engineered bacteria, we designed a kill switch which would respond to blue light. This would allow confinement of an engineered bacterium to an environment without blue light. To know more about the design of this module, please refer to "Design".
[1] Ohlendorf, R., Vidavski, R. R., Eldar, A., Moffat, K. & Möglich, A. From Dusk till Dawn: One-Plasmid Systems for Light-Regulated Gene Expression. J. Mol. Biol. 416, 534-542 (2012).
[2] Ceyssens, P.-J. et al. Genomic analysis of Pseudomonas aeruginosa phages LKD16 and LKA1: establishment of the phiKMV subgroup within the T7 supergroup. J. Bacteriol. 188, 6924-31 (2006).
[3] Guiziou, S. et al. A part toolbox to tune genetic expression in Bacillus subtilis. Nucleic Acids Res. 44, 7495-7508 (2016).
[4] Stirling, F. et al. Rational Design of Evolutionarily Stable Microbial Kill Switches. Mol. Cell 68, 686-697.e3 (2017).
