Team:Nanjing-China/Safety
Safety
Overview
Biosafety is the prevention of large-scale loss of biological integrity, focusing both on ecology and human health. These prevention mechanisms include conduction of regular reviews of the biosafety in laboratory settings, as well as strict guidelines to follow. Biosafety is used to protect us from harmful incidents. High security facilities are necessary when working with Synthetic Biology as there are possibilities of bioterrorism acts or release of harmful chemicals and or organisms into the environment. A complete understanding of experimental risks associated with synthetic biology is helping to enforce the knowledge and effectiveness of biosafety.
Our precautions
Our team is trying to figure out an innovative way to process the sewage and therefore generate energy for the growth of crops. Laboratory stored Escherichia coli strains DH 5alpha and Citrobacter freundii ATCC 8090 will be used as intermediate host for sub-cloning and definitive host for genetically engineering respectively.We believe that risks are primarily embodied in two aspects and we have figured out appropriate solutions to all of them.
Escherichia coli strain DH 5alpha is on the White list issued by the iGEM Safety Community and Citrobacter freundii ATCC 8090 is classified as Risk Group 1 organism according to the ATCC product sheets, therefore they would pose no risks to us and our colleagues, as well as our community and the environment.
However, the engineered bacteria may be released into the real world. So we have strict roles with these genetically modified organisms. Everyone should wash their hands before and after lab work. The waste produced in the lab are well-categorized and disposed so that the engineered bacteria won’t get into the environment.
As far as the crops, soybean and lettuce, are concerned, their seeds were purchased from Jiangsu Academy of Agricultural Science and they are local wildtype species rather than transgenesis lines. No risks as to their safety have been heard or reported yet.
We have inspectors to ensure our operation correctness and all team members have received systematical biosafety training from relevant courses in advance. We all possess the skills in waste disposal, accident prevention, emergency measures(such as how to tackle fire, electric leakage and negligent wounds) and so on. During our experiments, we stringently observed the biosafety guidelines issued both by our university and WHO.
References:
[1] Sewald N, Pühler A. Molecular systems biology[J]. Journal of Biotechnology, 2007, 129(2):171-172.
[2] James, Collins. Synthetic Biology: Bits and pieces come to life.[J]. Nature, 2012.
[3]Biosafety and the environment: An introduction to the Cartagena Protocol on Biosafety. GE.03-01836/E. United Nations Environment Programme p.8.