English for biotechnology 22019

Laboratory workers are exposed to numerous potential hazards including chemical, biological, physical and radioactive hazards, as well as musculoskeletal stresses.. Laboratory safety gui

NONG LAM UNIVERSITY HO CHI MINH CITY

TOPIC 1 LABORATORY SAFETY

The laboratory environment can be a hazardous place to work Laboratory workers are exposed to numerous potential hazards including chemical, biological, physical and radioactive hazards, as well as musculoskeletal stresses Laboratory safety is governed by numerous local, state and federal regulations Over the years, OSHA has promulgated rules and published guidance to make laboratories increasingly safe for personnel

Laboratory safety guidance document is designed to make employers aware of the OSHA standards as well as OSHA guidance that is available to protect workers from the diverse hazards encountered in laboratories The extent of detail on specific hazards provided in this document is dependent on the nature of each hazard and its importance in

a laboratory setting In addition to information on OSHA standards and guidance that deal with laboratory hazards, appendices are provided with information

1 Volcabularies

OSHA = Occupational Safety and Health Administration

n hazard (hăz′ərd): A possible source of danger

n appendix (ə-pĕn′dĭks); pl appendices: A collection of supplementary material, usually

at the end of a book

2 Discussion

Discuss in group and identify potential hazards in the laboratories where you are studying

3 Reading and comprehension

Read a guideline on health and safety induction of a university and answer the

questions

1 What are potential hazards in a biological laboratory?

2 Can you bring your laptop into laboratories?

3 Should you take off your labcoats when going to toilets?

4 why following the laboratory guidline is important?

5 what you should not do in the laboratory?

6 what should you do when seeing chemical spillage?

7 where can you find information relating to hazards at your workplace?

8 When may lab coats be worn in office areas?

a Never b when there is no obvious contamination

9 Which of the following are examples of personal protective equipment (PPE)?

a safety glasses b laboratory coat c gloves d safety shoes

e jumper f MP3 player

10 How would you dispose of tissue used for drying your hand?

a sharp bins b clinical waste bag c black bag waste

d autoclave then yellow clinical waste bag

11 The chemical you want to use does not have a substance risk assessment available

on HSDMS Should you …

a Use it anyway

b obtain safety data sheet from the supplier and write a substance risk assessment base on this information

c Read the data sheet and start your experiment

d Look at the hazard warning signs on the bottle and write a substance risk assessment based on these symbols

General Principles (DO) Avoid transferring contamination from laboratory areas, for example by:

 Taking care if bringing lab books, laptops, tablets etc into laboratories to ensure that they do not get contaminated

 Washing your hands when exiting laboratories: you must remove your lab coat before washing your hands

 Not wearing laboratory coats or gloves in office areas, eating areas or toilets Ensure you have been trained to use equipment

 so you are using it safely - so you don't get hurt

 so you are using it correctly - and get the correct results

 so you don't break it Training must be recorded in your training log and on the trained user list

Ensure you label solutions, flasks, tissue cultures, etc with:

General Principles-DO NOT

NO Eating and Drinking in the laboratory unless a designated area for Food Consumption (eg: North Lab/Nutritional Sciences Dietetics Lab and Clinical Skills Centre, Food Processing Facility, Food Flavour laboratory)

DO NOT remove laboratory coats from the laboratory areas They must not

be worn or taken into offices, toilets or eating areas

Mobile phones, personal stereos, mp3 players and i-pods etc must not be

contaminated with any of the hazardous substances being handled in the laboratory (including from your hands or gloves)

You must always be aware of what is going on and be able to hear the fire alarm

so you must not play music loudly

minimised This may be an engineering control

such as working in a fumehood or microbiological

safety cabinet, or wearing personal protective

equipment such as gloves or eye protection, or it

may require much more consideration for some

non standard activities

When considering hazards, you need to

consider the hazards around all activities; from

preparing the samples, carrying out the

experiments and disposing of waste at the end, and also how you might manage

accidents eg: spillage of chemicals

This must be formally captured in a procedure risk assessment before you start the work - more about this later!

(Note: For many procedures this will already be in place from other researchers in your area -you must ensure that you have read this documentation and that the work you are carrying out is covered by the procedure risk assessment)

Health and Safety Data Management System

The Health and Safety Data Management System (HSDMS) is where most safety information written by school researchers relating to hazards is stored

Hazard Information on Chemicals

Before using a chemical first check on HSDMS to see whether a substance risk assessment is in place and valid (they expire after a period of time) This will inform you

of the hazards associated with the chemical, safe handling and storage and first aid measures

If there is not a substance risk assessment available, or it has expired, then you need to find

the Safety Data Sheet (SDS) for the chemical The supplier of any chemical is legally obliged to provide this information and typically it is available from their website Information from the SDS is put into into a substance risk

assessment (COSHH) template on HSDMS

Chemicals have Hazards phrases (H-phrases) that define physical hazards (eg: H223: Flammable material, H261: In contact with water releases flammable gas), health hazards (eg: H330: Fatal if inhaled, H315: Causes skin irritation) and environmental

hazards (eg: H401: Toxic to aquatic life)

Chemicals also have Precautionary statements (eg: P403: Store in a well ventilated place, P232: Protect from moisture) which are added into the substance risk assessment

Note that Hazard phrases and Precautionary statements have now replaced the risk phrases (R) and safety (S) phrases that were previously used but some older substance risk assessments may still contain them

Other bits of information are gathered from the safety data sheet to complete the substance risk assessment

Note: When you need to order a chemical a Substance Risk Assessment number (S-number) needs to be quoted on the order form

Plant Sciences Laboratory Guidelines

LABORATORY WORKERS ARE REQUIRED TO BE AWARE OF THEIR

RESPONSIBILITIES

This document aims to provide new laboratory members with concise information

regarding Laboratory Safety and the general running of the ACGM Laboratory Suite in Plant Sciences

Ensure that you know who your Lab Mentor is before you start!

This person will work with you in the initial weeks to ensure you are able to work safely in the lab

Please note that Technical Services Staff are Marlene Oldman & Zoe Phillips

1 General Laboratory consumables

Consumables are normally purchased by each group using their own budgets, though there are exceptions (eg pipette tips, some glassware, some plastics, microcentrifuge tubes, sterile water) that are provided centrally It is not

acceptable to go and help yourself to items from another area without first asking permission from the senior person in that area

2 Fridges, freezers and cold store

ALL items placed in cold store of any sort must be labelled with your NAME (initials are not sufficient) and be correctly stored Space is allocated for each group – you may not use someone else’s space without their permission Please note that if a freezer etc breaks down, anything that is not correctly labelled will be disposed of without any warning

3 Autoclaves

Some laboratories have bench top autoclaves – you may not use these unless you have been trained (see the person in charge of the area) There is also a central autoclaving service which provides sterile items for general use, autoclaves waste

as required and provides an autoclave service as required if you need sterile

media etc These autoclaves may only be operated by trained users and are not available for general use

4 Washing up

Washing up is done by Technical Services staff - you should rinse out any

glassware etc, put it in a bucket in your lab and then take to Technical Services (A44) for washing up

Technical Services staff are not expected to collect your washing up from the lab They also are not expected to deal with any hazardous chemicals in your bottles etc – this is for you to deal with before you put your washing up in the buckets

5 Pipettes

These will be supplied by your research group as required It is your responsibility

to look after them and to check at least once a month that they are accurate and working correctly Do not borrow anyone else’s pipettes without their permission

6 Pipette tips

General tips (10ul, 200ul & 1000ul) are provided ready racked & sterile in boxes Please do not hoard the boxes on your bench – place boxes for re-filling into the red box in your lab The Alphalab tip boxes are for tips only and nothing else ie not for general storage If you require storage boxes, either buy them or ask Technical Service staff if there are any old tip boxes that you can use

7 Laboratory Coats

You will usually be issued with 2 laboratory coats for your use – please see

Technical Service staff You should mark them with your name and lab number (use permanent marker) and hang on a labelled peg in one of the lab coat rooms You should send them for laundry regularly

Please note that lab coats should be of the ‘Howie’ type only!

Laboratory coats must be worn (fastened up) at all times in laboratory areas Lab coats must not be worn outside laboratory areas

Visitors must use the light blue lab coats hanging in the lab coat room – they must

be returned there after use and not left elsewhere in the building

8 Safety glasses, gloves and other PPE

If required you will be issued with a pair of safety glasses which must be worn when carrying out some procedures e.g when working with liquid nitrogen (see risk assessments for advice)

Prescription safety glasses are available if required, please see the Buildings Safety Officer

Gloves should be worn as necessary and are provided by each research group Other PPE (Personal protective equipment) will be provided as required

FOOTWEAR – Must be boots or shoes ensuring that feet are completely covered

The pH meter in Technical Services may also be used – this does NOT have a Tris electrode Anyone found using this meter to pH Tris will be asked for a project code so that the electrode can be replaced

10 Balances

Again, these are in most laboratories You are responsible for cleaning up any spillages of chemicals onto the balance Spillages can be hazardous for the next user who will not know what the chemical is and the spill may also damage the balance if not cleaned up

You must be trained in SAFE WEIGHING techniques if you intend to weigh hazardous substances!

11 Centrifuges

These are potentially hazardous pieces of equipment The benchtop

microcentrifuges and the large floor-standing centrifuges may only be used by people who have received training for them – please ask Technical Services staff for training

12 Communal areas & Equipment

There are a number of communal areas and pieces of equipment:

 You are expected to clear up after yourself – do not leave anything lying about

 You must be trained to use all equipment before use!

 Anything placed in shakers, incubators, cold store etc MUST be labelled with your NAME and what it is

 Growth rooms – all work placed into any growth room MUST be clearly labelled with what it is and your NAME

Please note that initials are not sufficient In the event of equipment/room failure, anything not clearly identifiable WILL be disposed of without warning

 Gel Doc system: all users are expected to help remove waste as required and not just to leave for ‘someone’ to deal with If using UV

transilluminators to cut out gel bands etc, a UV protective visor must be worn and the UV lights turned off after use

 Ethidium Bromide is restricted to specific areas in each lab and must not be used anywhere else Buffers must not be poured down the drains without first being treated to remove any EtBr See the guidelines in your area

 Laminar Flow benches: these are provided in communal areas for general use (A34 & A59) In other areas, check with the senior person in the lab

before use Please note that these benches protect your work but not you and should not be used for bacterial, yeast or fungal spore work.

 Liquid nitrogen is provided for general use However, all users must be trained and have completed the MOODLE quiz online – if your name is not

on the MOODLE list, you cannot use liquid nitrogen

 Carcinogens, Mutagens, Substances Toxic to Reproduction (CMR) All users MUST complete the CMR Moodle Quiz BEFORE using these substances

13 Waste disposal

All Laboratory workers are responsible for waste that they produce:

I All bacterial, fungal & yeast plates must be autoclaved before disposal Please put your waste into autoclave bags and take to room A44 (Technical Services) for autoclaving

II All liquid bacterial, yeast and fungal cultures must be inactivated before disposal by either autoclaving or treating with disinfectant

III Cardboard packaging from deliveries must be folded flat in the deliveries corridor

IV Polystyrene boxes must be returned to the sender for recycling where

possible or placed in the general waste bins in the bin store opposite the front of Plant Sciences

V Chemical waste must be disposed of following instuctions on the COSHH form

VI Most other laboratory waste must be placed in yellow bags for incineration and the bags removed to the large yellow bins at the rear of the building

DO NOT place lab gloves into handwash bins next to the handwash sinks! Otherwise the cleaners will not empty the bins

Please remember that waste disposal is the responsibility of all workers – we do not have anyone who does this for us

If you have any questions about waste disposal, please see Jools Marquez

14 Equipment/facilities breakdowns

If you notice any problems, please let your supervisor know first If the problem is with communal equipment, please let Jools Marquez or Technical Services Staff know – equipment will not be repaired if no-one knows it is broken!!

Safety Instructions

In an Emergency Dial 8888 from any telephone Laboratory telephones are located in all labs

Fire

The fire alarm is a two tone siren

When the alarm sounds exit the laboratory via the nearest safe exit

The Emergency exit doors are situated in each laboratory clearly marked ‘FIRE EXIT’ Exit the building and assemble on the grass between Plant Sciences & Food

Sciences

Do not re-enter the building until advised to do so by the Duty Fire Officer

Fire fighting equipment is mounted on the wall in the Labs – you will be shown these during your Lab Induction:

a) Carbon dioxide fire extinguisher b) Foam fire extinguisher c) Fire blanket

First Aid Provision

First Aid boxes, eye wash bottles and hand washing sinks are located in the Labs You will be shown these during your Lab Induction

Please inform Technical Services Staff if you use any items from the First Aid Box

Any incidents requiring First Aid must be recorded on the University Incident Reporting web page - please contact The Buildings Safety Officer (Jools Marquez)

ALL FIRST AID BOXES ARE CLEARLY MARKED

A SAFETY INFORMATION POINT is located in every lab close to the telephone

providing emergency number, First Aiders etc

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COSHH – Ordering & storage of chemicals and consumables

Every chemical purchased or bought into the laboratory requires an up to date Control of Substances Hazardous to Health (COSHH) sheet to be filed in the Laboratory COSHH folder Your Lab Mentor will show you how to access this information or how to write one SOPs – Standard Operating Procedure

Your Lab Mentor should supply these or help you to write them for all the procedures that you use in the Lab

RAs – Risk Assessments

You should have a written Risk assessment for every procedure you carry out in the lab Your Lab Mentor will advise you on this

COSHH, SOPs and RAs can be accessed and created on the University HSDMS site

https://hsdms.nottingham.ac.uk/current/

TOPIC 2 LABORATORY TOOLS AND EQUIPMENT

1 Laboratory tools and equipment

A biological laboratory should be furnished with the following tools and equipment Match the figures of these tools with their appropriate description

Match the figures of the laboratoy tools with their names

…….1 Sterile class petri dishes

…… 2 forceps

…… 3 Scalpel /ˈskalpəl/

…… 4 beaker

…… 5 test tube rack

…… 6 waterproof marking pen

…… 7 culture tubes

…… 8 bunsen burner

…… 9 jar with lid

…… 10 test tube clamp/holder