Download (P) BioSafety Policy - Bigelow Laboratory for Ocean Sciences

BLOS HazCom - Part P.
Bigelow Laboratory for Ocean Sciences
Biosafety Policy & Institutional Biosafety Committee
The primary responsibilities of the Institutional Biosafety Committee (IBC) are three-fold:
1) to provide general oversight of all research involving BioSafety Level 2 and higher
organisms (see table below), 2) to oversee the evaluation and approval process for
proposals using recombinant DNA technologies on all organisms, and 3) to ensure that
researchers using such methods are following through with compliance with the Bigelow
Laboratory Policy on Genetic Manipulation and the NIH guidelines on this topic, in particular
those related to the health and safety of the environment and surrounding community.
Biosafety
Levels
Examples of
cells
Exempt BSL-1
Wild-type cells from
non-human/non-primate
species that have NOT
been exposed to any
microbial agent and
have not been
genetically modified
OR cells determined by
the IBC to be NIH
exempt.
BSL-1
Cells from nonhuman/primate species
that have NOT been
exposed to any microbial
agent, but have been
genetically modified
using non-viral methods
OR cells determined by
the IBC to be approved
as non-exempt BSL-1
BSL-2
Cells from humans or
primates OR Cells that
have been geneticallly
modified using viral
methods OR Cells
exposed to microbial
agents AND have been
approved by the IBC for
BSL-2 containment and
sorting.
BSL-2+ (enhanced)
Cells exposed to microbial
agents with moderate
increased personal hazard
OR Cells that have been
genetically modified using
viral methods with known
oncogenic inserts AND
have been approved by the
IBC for BSL-2+
containment and sorting.
Bigelow Laboratory for Ocean Sciences takes the issue of working with genes and their host
organisms, with or without their modification, very seriously. The IBC documents outline the
procedures to be followed when working with BSL 2 or higher organisms and genes,
including the process of deciding whether to engage in a project that involves genetic
modification or genetic engineering.
These documents can be found on BLOS Storage\Resources\Safety\IBC or by contacting the
chair of the IBC (see below).
For clarity, when working with genes it is necessary to distinguish between genetic
modification and genetic engineering.
Genetically Modified Organisms (GMOs) are organisms in which the DNA from another
genus (or higher taxonomic level) has been inserted into an organism in a laboratory.
Genetically Engineered (GE) organisms are strains which have been genetically-altered
in the lab but do not contain artificially-inserted DNA from another organism. GE
organisms are created instead through exposure to a DNA mutagen (e.g., ultraviolet
light, chemical agents), by directed gene ‘knock-outs’, or by targeted gene editing. In
practice, most of the existing federal guidelines for biosafety have been written with
GMOs in mind, but there is still sometimes ambiguity around what exactly is meant by a
GMO. For the purposes of this document, Bigelow Laboratory will adhere to the
definitions above.
Bigelow Laboratory’s policy is that all proposed research that use BSL 2 or higher
organisms, with or without the use of recombinant and/or synthetic DNA methods, must
BLOS HazCom Part P
Created 21 Oct 2014
Reviewed: 6/30/2017
first be reported to the IBC committee via a registration document (BLOS HazCom
Appendix 18A and B, or Storage\Resources\Safety\IBC, or from the IBC chair).
Current IBC members:
Dr. Mike Lomas, SRS, chair
Dr. Peter Countway, SRS
Dr. David Emerson, SRS
Dr. Jose Antonio Fernandez Robledo, SRS
Wendy Bellows, Safety Officer
Tim Pinkham, Lab Manager
Dr. Sarah Foulger, Pastor, BBH Congregational Church
Lauren Graham, BRHS science teacher
BLOS HazCom Part P
Created 21 Oct 2014
Reviewed: 6/30/2017