Applied biosafety : journal of the American Biological Safety Association最新文献

{"title":"ANSI/ASSP Z9.14-2020 Testing and Performance-Verification Methodologies for Biosafety Level 3 (BSL-3) and Animal Biosafety Level 3 (ABSL-3) Ventilation Systems.","authors":"Farhad Memarzadeh","doi":"10.1177/1535676020925562","DOIUrl":"https://doi.org/10.1177/1535676020925562","url":null,"abstract":"<p><p>The American National Standards Institute has approved the revised standard ANSI/ASSP Z9.14-2020, \"Testing and Performance-Verification Methodologies for Biosafety Level 3 (BSL-3) and Animal Biosafety Level 3 (ABSL-3) Ventilation Systems\"; the revision was published on March 31, 2020. ANSI/ASSP Z9.14-2020 focuses on performance verification of engineering controls related specifically to ventilation system features of BSL-3/ABSL-3 facilities. The revised standard has been enhanced to include new definitions; new guidance for developing corrective action plans and performing verification of conformance to regulations, appendices, risk assessment matrices, and checklists dedicated to performing a facility risk assessment; and numerous updates to the original content.</p>","PeriodicalId":520561,"journal":{"name":"Applied biosafety : journal of the American Biological Safety Association","volume":" ","pages":"181-183"},"PeriodicalIF":1.5,"publicationDate":"2020-12-01","publicationTypes":"Journal Article","fieldsOfStudy":null,"isOpenAccess":false,"openAccessPdf":"https://sci-hub-pdf.com/10.1177/1535676020925562","citationCount":null,"resultStr":null,"platform":"Semanticscholar","paperid":"33442189","PeriodicalName":null,"FirstCategoryId":null,"ListUrlMain":null,"RegionNum":0,"RegionCategory":"","ArticlePicture":[],"TitleCN":null,"AbstractTextCN":null,"PMCID":"OA","EPubDate":null,"PubModel":null,"JCR":null,"JCRName":null,"Score":null,"Total":0}

{"title":"Managing Biorisk Linked to Rapidly Expanding SARS-CoV-2 Research.","authors":"Viji Vijayan","doi":"10.1177/1535676020942354","DOIUrl":"https://doi.org/10.1177/1535676020942354","url":null,"abstract":"COVID-19 was declared a pandemic by the World Health Organization in March 2020 and is caused by the virus known as SARS-CoV-2. A critical component of global efforts to combat a pandemic is biomedical research. To carry out the research safely, laboratories need to have implemented a wellthought-out biorisk management system (BMS). BMS is a systematic approach to addressing biorisk through hazard identification, risk assessment, risk mitigation, and performance monitoring. This system needs to be already implemented during non-pandemic times so that research related to the outbreak can be managed safely during the pandemic period. Biomedical research, especially on a novel infectious agent, has to be balanced with mitigation measures that are commensurate with the risk. Guidelines for research on SARS-CoV-2 were created early in the outbreak by the US Centers for Disease Control and Prevention and Ministry of Health, Singapore. The guidelines stipulate that virus isolation, virus characterization in cell culture, and the manipulation of infectious virus require biosafety level 3 (BSL-3) containment together with siteand activity-specific risk assessment. The Duke-NUS animal BSL-3 facility is a small annually certified (at BSL-3 containment) 3-lab modular building with about 100 m of functional floor area. The facility has implemented a BMS that includes a multidisciplinary biosafety committee (BC) that oversees all aspects of safety in the facility. There are facility standard operating procedures (SOPs) and risk assessments (RAs) that cover all facility operations. In addition, every time a research team wants to start a project, they need to submit a project application that includes SOPs and RAs for all the research procedures to be undertaken in that project. This application is reviewed by the BC and after approval is implemented in conjunction with the facility SOPs and RAs. Since the COVID-19 outbreak, the BC has seen a 15-fold increase in number of project applications to perform SARSCoV-2-related research. When considering these applications alongside the existing BMS strategy, the following challenges were encountered and addressed:","PeriodicalId":520561,"journal":{"name":"Applied biosafety : journal of the American Biological Safety Association","volume":" ","pages":"132-133"},"PeriodicalIF":1.5,"publicationDate":"2020-09-01","publicationTypes":"Journal Article","fieldsOfStudy":null,"isOpenAccess":false,"openAccessPdf":"https://sci-hub-pdf.com/10.1177/1535676020942354","citationCount":null,"resultStr":null,"platform":"Semanticscholar","paperid":"33444707","PeriodicalName":null,"FirstCategoryId":null,"ListUrlMain":null,"RegionNum":0,"RegionCategory":"","ArticlePicture":[],"TitleCN":null,"AbstractTextCN":null,"PMCID":"OA","EPubDate":null,"PubModel":null,"JCR":null,"JCRName":null,"Score":null,"Total":0}

{"title":"Repurposing Surgical Wrap Textiles for Use as Protective Masks During Pandemic Response.","authors":"Christopher J Woolverton,&nbsp;Richard E Ferdig,&nbsp;Andrew Snyder,&nbsp;Janet Reed,&nbsp;Tracy Dodson,&nbsp;Susan Thomas","doi":"10.1177/1535676020925958","DOIUrl":"https://doi.org/10.1177/1535676020925958","url":null,"abstract":"We are in the midst of a pandemic caused by severe acute respiratory syndrome coronavirus 2 (SARS-CoV-2), a novel coronavirus. At the time of writing, there were 2.17 million global coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19) cases with 146,000 deaths. Unfortunately, some of these deaths represent health care workers and first responders. One major challenge in preventing the occupational spread of SARS-CoV-2 is the lack of personal protective equipment (PPE), particularly filtering facepiece respirators (FFRs). (Our use of the phrase “surgical mask design or type” below is to denote the appearance of the mask. It is the textile that we believe makes this design of mask an FFR, as it creates a negative pressure environment that filters Bitrex particles out of the air that the user is breathing.) We acknowledge up front that we do not have enough data to submit a research article yet; we are pursuing standard FFR (quantitative) testing. However, in this time of pandemic crisis, we recognize the severe lack of PPE on the front lines of the pandemic and thus offer an option that might meet responder needs. We hope that this information is helpful for both research and practice while we further study these materials. Herein, we report efforts to provide a “crisis” alternative mask that provides improved fit compared to a surgical mask (SM), being more like an FFR. We adapted and evaluated the use of a medical-grade textile for mask development. Initially proposed by University of Florida researchers, the 2-ply spunpolypropylene sterilization wrap, Halyard H600 (Owens & Minor), was suggested to serve as a viable material for mask creation. We created 26 sewn masks that resembled typical SM designs (Figure 1, A, B, C, and D models) and 2 designs that resemble N95s (Figure 1, E and F models) from Halyard textiles (H200, H300, H600, or H650). Variations of these designs were sewn from at least two 7 8 in. (“larger” size) or two 7 6.5 in. (“smaller” size) for SM-style designs. In addition, up to 4 layers of textiles were tested for fit, comfort, and resistance to breathing. The H600 textile used as a surgical wrap is 2-ply. We started with this thickness and increased the thickness sequentially. Masks were secured to the face by elastic headbands or tied with textile straps. Masks had pliable metal stays inserted to assist sealing at the nose bridge and chin. We used qualitative fit testing to determine which masks “sealed” to the face as determined by Bitrex exclusion (ie, the test is passed if the subject fails to taste the Bitrex). Qualitative testing of the masks also included evaluating their comfort and wearability (1 1⁄4 best; 3 1⁄4 worst) and resistance to breathing or breathability (1 1⁄4 easiest; 3 1⁄4 hardest). One author with a “larger face” and 2 authors with “smaller” faces evaluated the mask designs by qualitative fit testing, supervised by a certified nurse. We present the results of those masks that passed the fit test in Table 1. Each SM design ","PeriodicalId":520561,"journal":{"name":"Applied biosafety : journal of the American Biological Safety Association","volume":" ","pages":"127-129"},"PeriodicalIF":1.5,"publicationDate":"2020-09-01","publicationTypes":"Journal Article","fieldsOfStudy":null,"isOpenAccess":false,"openAccessPdf":"https://sci-hub-pdf.com/10.1177/1535676020925958","citationCount":null,"resultStr":null,"platform":"Semanticscholar","paperid":"33444708","PeriodicalName":null,"FirstCategoryId":null,"ListUrlMain":null,"RegionNum":0,"RegionCategory":"","ArticlePicture":[],"TitleCN":null,"AbstractTextCN":null,"PMCID":"OA","EPubDate":null,"PubModel":null,"JCR":null,"JCRName":null,"Score":null,"Total":0}

{"title":"COVID-19 and Beyond: Safety and Design Considerations for the Development of a Mobile Biocontainment Laboratory.","authors":"Martin Linster,&nbsp;Benson Ng,&nbsp;Viji Vijayan","doi":"10.1177/1535676020943394","DOIUrl":"https://doi.org/10.1177/1535676020943394","url":null,"abstract":"<p><strong>Introduction: </strong>An infectious disease outbreak like the current COVID-19 pandemic can lead to particularly high infection rates in areas where diagnostic laboratory support is limited. The deployment of mobile laboratories can help to detect pathogens, monitor the presence in a population, and inform public health authorities to take measures aimed at reducing pathogen spread.</p><p><strong>Materials and methods: </strong>Available layouts and operational descriptions of mobile laboratories were analyzed for their suitability for the envisioned purpose and to assure high standards of biosafety and biosecurity. Recent media coverage on creative solutions for the diagnostics of SARS-CoV-2 (drive-through test centers, self-swab, inverse gloveboxes to protect health care workers) from various countries were considered.</p><p><strong>Results: </strong>A minimalistic and optimized design to construct a multifunctional laboratory on the chassis of a regular-sized box truck is proposed and can serve as a blueprint to rapidly develop additional diagnostic capacities.</p><p><strong>Discussion: </strong>For acute health threats including the current COVID-19 outbreak, rapid diagnosis of infection is key to recommend measures aimed at preventing the spread of the pathogen. Laboratory layouts that are similar to the one proposed here are used in stationary setups, and mobile laboratories have been built on varying platforms (trailers, shipping containers, etc).</p>","PeriodicalId":520561,"journal":{"name":"Applied biosafety : journal of the American Biological Safety Association","volume":" ","pages":"169-173"},"PeriodicalIF":1.5,"publicationDate":"2020-09-01","publicationTypes":"Journal Article","fieldsOfStudy":null,"isOpenAccess":false,"openAccessPdf":"https://sci-hub-pdf.com/10.1177/1535676020943394","citationCount":null,"resultStr":null,"platform":"Semanticscholar","paperid":"33444783","PeriodicalName":null,"FirstCategoryId":null,"ListUrlMain":null,"RegionNum":0,"RegionCategory":"","ArticlePicture":[],"TitleCN":null,"AbstractTextCN":null,"PMCID":"OA","EPubDate":null,"PubModel":null,"JCR":null,"JCRName":null,"Score":null,"Total":0}

{"title":"Strategies for Validation of Inactivation of Viruses with Trizol® LS and Formalin Solutions.","authors":"Cary Retterer,&nbsp;Tara Kenny,&nbsp;Rouzbeh Zamani,&nbsp;Louis A Altamura,&nbsp;Brian Kearney,&nbsp;Jim Jaissle,&nbsp;Susan Coyne,&nbsp;Scott Olschner,&nbsp;David Harbourt","doi":"10.1177/1535676020915065","DOIUrl":"https://doi.org/10.1177/1535676020915065","url":null,"abstract":"<p><strong>Introduction: </strong>Inactivation of biological agents and particularly select agents has come under increased scrutiny since the US Army inadvertently shipped live anthrax both inside and outside the US, leading to more stringent regulations regarding inactivation.</p><p><strong>Methods: </strong>Formalin and Trizol® LS were used to inactivate virus samples in complex matrices. Cytotoxic chemicals were removed using either desalting or concentrating columns or through dilution using HYPER<i>Flasks</i>. Efficacy of inactivation was evaluated either through plaque assay or immunofluorescence assay.</p><p><strong>Results: </strong>All virus samples and tissue specimens were successfully inactivated using either formalin or Trizol® LS. Both the desalting columns and concentrating columns were able to remove cytotoxic chemicals to facilitate viral amplification in controls. Dilution of cytotoxic chemicals through HYPER<i>Flasks</i> was also successful provided that media was changed completely within 48 hours of first cell passage.</p><p><strong>Discussion: </strong>All inactivation testing demonstrates that both formalin and Trizol® LS successfully inactivate virus-infected cell lines and tissues, which is consistent with previously published literature. Each sample cleanup method has its benefits and pitfalls. Desalting columns can process the largest sample size but are also susceptible to plugging and degradation, whereas concentrating columns are not as vulnerable but can only process 5% of the sample load per run.</p><p><strong>Conclusion: </strong>Based on our results along with those of our colleagues, it is recommended that the regulatory authorities re-evaluate the requirements for each entity to validate well-established inactivation methods in house because there would be limited benefits despite the considerable resources required for this effort.</p>","PeriodicalId":520561,"journal":{"name":"Applied biosafety : journal of the American Biological Safety Association","volume":" ","pages":"74-82"},"PeriodicalIF":1.5,"publicationDate":"2020-06-01","publicationTypes":"Journal Article","fieldsOfStudy":null,"isOpenAccess":false,"openAccessPdf":"https://sci-hub-pdf.com/10.1177/1535676020915065","citationCount":null,"resultStr":null,"platform":"Semanticscholar","paperid":"33444276","PeriodicalName":null,"FirstCategoryId":null,"ListUrlMain":null,"RegionNum":0,"RegionCategory":"","ArticlePicture":[],"TitleCN":null,"AbstractTextCN":null,"PMCID":"OA","EPubDate":null,"PubModel":null,"JCR":null,"JCRName":null,"Score":null,"Total":0}

{"title":"Strengthening Biosafety and Epidemiological Surveillance of Infectious Diseases in North America: Lyssaviruses Surveillance as an Example of Emergency Preparedness and Response.","authors":"Nidia Aréchiga Ceballos,&nbsp;Luis Alberto Ochoa-Carrera","doi":"10.1177/1535676020916603","DOIUrl":"https://doi.org/10.1177/1535676020916603","url":null,"abstract":"In 2008, the governments of Mexico, United States, and Canada signed the North American Rabies Management Plan (NARMP). The plan was designed to meet the challenge of long-term rabies management by strengthening the National Laboratory Network within each country and strengthening the capacity for a coordinated response across shared borders. Lyssaviruses are an important public health threat for North America. Epidemiological surveillance in animal and human populations has become a critical component of public health systems. There are 16 species of Lyssaviruses that have been classified within 3 or possibly more phylogroups. All Lyssaviruses are capable of causing encephalitis in mammals, but some of them seem to be more prone to produce spillovers to other species, including humans. The vaccines currently used to prevent rabies are effective against all Lyssaviruses in phylogroup 1 but ineffective against Lyssaviruses in phylogroups 2 and 3. Mexico embarked on a successful urban dog and cat rabies control program through mass vaccination campaigns, enhanced rabies surveillance along the Mexican–US border, and implementation of vampire bat population control programs. Mexico was the first country in the world to have been recognized by the World Health Organization/Pan American Health Organization as a country free of human rabies transmitted by dogs and to control dog-to-dog rabies transmission. By fostering the communication between several agencies and effective risk assessment to optimize the existing resources in the region as well as strengthening biosafety programs, Mexico began a 2-year program of emergency preparedness and response training with the RNSLP (Spanish acronym for the Public Health Laboratory Network). The first phase provided training on infectious substance shipping for the safe and secure transportation of biological samples from the local laboratories to the Reference Rabies Laboratory at the Instituto de Diagnóstico y Referencia Epidemiológicos (InDRE). Category A containers were distributed to the RNSLP for shipping samples from cases of suspected encephalitis. For the second phase of the training, a strategy for containment and diagnostics was developed. A flow chart for decision making was designed (Figure 1). With this flow chart, the technical experts of the RNLSP can detect in a timely manner the potential and serious threat indicated by the introduction of a nonendemic rabies virus variant or another Lyssavirus species. In 2019, during the framework of “1er Foro Nacional para los Laboratorios que realizan el Diagnostico de Rabia,” the members of the RNLSP signed an agreement to use this strategic plan and the shipping instructions of all suspected and potential samples to the Biosafety Level 3 laboratory at InDRE. Long-term priorities identified for the success of a rabies management program include the development of improved or new oral vaccines and baits to immunize target species. To optimize the achievemen","PeriodicalId":520561,"journal":{"name":"Applied biosafety : journal of the American Biological Safety Association","volume":" ","pages":"71-73"},"PeriodicalIF":1.5,"publicationDate":"2020-06-01","publicationTypes":"Journal Article","fieldsOfStudy":null,"isOpenAccess":false,"openAccessPdf":"https://sci-hub-pdf.com/10.1177/1535676020916603","citationCount":null,"resultStr":null,"platform":"Semanticscholar","paperid":"33444279","PeriodicalName":null,"FirstCategoryId":null,"ListUrlMain":null,"RegionNum":0,"RegionCategory":"","ArticlePicture":[],"TitleCN":null,"AbstractTextCN":null,"PMCID":"OA","EPubDate":null,"PubModel":null,"JCR":null,"JCRName":null,"Score":null,"Total":0}

{"title":"Decontamination and Reuse of N95 Respirators with Hydrogen Peroxide Vapor to Address Worldwide Personal Protective Equipment Shortages During the SARS-CoV-2 (COVID-19) Pandemic.","authors":"Antony Schwartz,&nbsp;Matthew Stiegel,&nbsp;Nicole Greeson,&nbsp;Andrea Vogel,&nbsp;Wayne Thomann,&nbsp;Monte Brown,&nbsp;Gregory D Sempowski,&nbsp;Thomas Scott Alderman,&nbsp;James Patrick Condreay,&nbsp;James Burch,&nbsp;Cameron Wolfe,&nbsp;Becky Smith,&nbsp;Sarah Lewis","doi":"10.1177/1535676020919932","DOIUrl":"https://doi.org/10.1177/1535676020919932","url":null,"abstract":"The SARS-CoV-2 (COVID-19) pandemic has placed a tremendous amount of strain on resources in the health care setting. One of the most pressing issues is the rapid depletion of personal protective equipment (PPE) used in the care of patients. This is a significant concern for health care workers’ health and safety. Many entities have depleted or soon will exhaust their stockpile of PPE despite adopting PPE-sparing practices as the number of COVID-19 cases in the United States increases at an almost exponential rate and manufacturers struggle to keep up with the worldwide demand. This potential shortage is particularly concerning for commonly used N95 respirators and powered-air purifying respirators (PAPRs). Recently, the US Occupational Safety and Health Administration (OSHA) even temporarily suspended the requirement to perform annual fit testing of respirators to allow entities to conserve respirators and preserve them for patient care. These measures are unprecedented and highlight the urgent need for entities to develop solutions to proactively address what could be potentially a grave occupational health issue. At Duke University and Health System, we have evaluated and will begin using hydrogen peroxide vapor to decontaminate and reuse N95 respirators. In this communication, we briefly discuss the decontamination validation process and post-decontamination performance validation conducted at Duke. This validation, which is supported by previous laboratory testing, funded by the US Food and Drug Administration (FDA), demonstrated that N95 respirators still met performance requirements even after decontamination with hydrogen peroxide vapor in the laboratory setting for over 50 times. While previous studies have shown the applicability of the hydrogen peroxide vapor process, we have also confirmed that the respirator still functions as designed, using our standardized human N95 fit testing methodology. We will now use this internally validated and Duke Institutional Biosafety Review Committee (IBRC)–approved laboratory decontamination process in the clinical setting to dramatically extend the life of our N95 respirators. We hope that sharing our processes through this brief communication can help other entities with access to hydrogen peroxide vapor to evaluate the potential applicability of this technology at their facility or partner with those who may already have this capability, including other private-sector life science organizations.","PeriodicalId":520561,"journal":{"name":"Applied biosafety : journal of the American Biological Safety Association","volume":" ","pages":"67-70"},"PeriodicalIF":1.5,"publicationDate":"2020-06-01","publicationTypes":"Journal Article","fieldsOfStudy":null,"isOpenAccess":false,"openAccessPdf":"https://sci-hub-pdf.com/10.1177/1535676020919932","citationCount":null,"resultStr":null,"platform":"Semanticscholar","paperid":"33444274","PeriodicalName":null,"FirstCategoryId":null,"ListUrlMain":null,"RegionNum":0,"RegionCategory":"","ArticlePicture":[],"TitleCN":null,"AbstractTextCN":null,"PMCID":"OA","EPubDate":null,"PubModel":null,"JCR":null,"JCRName":null,"Score":null,"Total":0}

{"title":"Characterization of Work Settings in Which Biosafety Professionals Conduct Operations: Results from the First Survey of the Biosafety Analytics Initiative Survey Series.","authors":"Robert J Emery,&nbsp;Janelle Rios,&nbsp;Zackary B Becker,&nbsp;Brett Haltiwanger,&nbsp;Scott J Patlovich","doi":"10.1177/1535676020902614","DOIUrl":"https://doi.org/10.1177/1535676020902614","url":null,"abstract":"<p><strong>Introduction: </strong>With the endorsement and support of the ABSA International Council and the Prevention, Preparedness and Response (P2R) Academy of The University of Texas Health Science Center at Houston (UTHealth) School of Public Health, a survey to characterize the work settings in which biosafety professionals operate was conducted. The survey was the first of a planned series of 10 solicitations in support of an overarching \"Biosafety Analytics Initiative,\" the goal of which is to identify commonalities, trends, possible benchmarking opportunities, and professional training needs.</p><p><strong>Methods: </strong>The survey was developed, tested, and then distributed electronically for a 3-week period between May 29 and June 19, 2019.</p><p><strong>Results: </strong>A total of 228 ABSA International members completed responses (15.6% of total membership). The results of the survey indicate that 59.7% of the total membership respondents conduct operations in the public or private academic setting, but when separated by domestic vs international respondents, 38% of the international respondents operate in government (nonacademic) settings. The bulk of biosafety activities were reported as providing support to BSL-1 and BSL-2 laboratories, with more than 90% of respondents indicating that they support work with risk group 1 and 2 organisms. Approximately 60% of the biosafety programs responding reported being organizationally aligned within institutional Environmental Health & Safety programs.</p><p><strong>Conclusion: </strong>The results of this survey serve as a foundation for current and future ABSA International priorities regarding professional development, recruitment, and training opportunities.</p>","PeriodicalId":520561,"journal":{"name":"Applied biosafety : journal of the American Biological Safety Association","volume":" ","pages":"90-95"},"PeriodicalIF":1.5,"publicationDate":"2020-06-01","publicationTypes":"Journal Article","fieldsOfStudy":null,"isOpenAccess":false,"openAccessPdf":"https://sci-hub-pdf.com/10.1177/1535676020902614","citationCount":null,"resultStr":null,"platform":"Semanticscholar","paperid":"33444277","PeriodicalName":null,"FirstCategoryId":null,"ListUrlMain":null,"RegionNum":0,"RegionCategory":"","ArticlePicture":[],"TitleCN":null,"AbstractTextCN":null,"PMCID":"OA","EPubDate":null,"PubModel":null,"JCR":null,"JCRName":null,"Score":null,"Total":0}

{"title":"Role of Training and Experience in Biosafety Practices Among Nurses Working in Level 2 or 3 Patient Containment.","authors":"Tahar Bajjou,&nbsp;Khalid Ennibi,&nbsp;Idriss Lahlou Amine,&nbsp;Fattouma Mahassine,&nbsp;Yassine Sekhsokh,&nbsp;Claudia Gentry-Weeks","doi":"10.1177/1535676019899506","DOIUrl":"https://doi.org/10.1177/1535676019899506","url":null,"abstract":"<p><strong>Introduction: </strong>This study was conducted to assess the difference in biosafety behaviors among nurses working in a levels 2 and 3 hospital unit in Morocco and the need for additional biosafety training before working in a high-containment facility.</p><p><strong>Methods: </strong>A prospective cross-sectional and observational study was conducted among new and experienced nurses in the Center of Virology and Tropical Infectious Diseases of the Military Teaching Hospital Mohammed V of Rabat, Morocco, between December 1, 2017 and February 28, 2018 (3 months). We compared behaviors in biosafety practices (donning gloves, handwashing, etc) between the 2 groups, and data were collected by observing workers directly or via camera.</p><p><strong>Results: </strong>A total of 31 nurses, 14 newly graduated nurses (45.2%) and 17 experienced and trained (54.8%) nurses, were observed during 89 entries into high-containment hospital rooms. Among the behaviors observed, only donning an inner pair of gloves was observed consistently between the 2 groups. Experienced and trained nurses washed their hands (100%) and observed the antiseptic contact time (71%), whereas recently graduated nurses ignored these activities significantly (79% and 32%, respectively). During handling of the patient, the trained and experienced nurses were significantly better than the new ones in the practices of biosafety and personal protection. Gaps in biosafety were observed more frequently among newly graduated workers, especially donning outer gloves before patient contact, nurses touching their faces, and the act of wearing jewelry while working.</p><p><strong>Conclusion: </strong>Safety training should begin early in the training curriculum with theoretical and practical courses. It must be introduced into the general biosafety policy as part of a safety and standard working culture. It is recommended that personnel be required to pass a proficiency exam in critical biosafety tasks before working with high-risk patients.</p>","PeriodicalId":520561,"journal":{"name":"Applied biosafety : journal of the American Biological Safety Association","volume":" ","pages":"96-103"},"PeriodicalIF":1.5,"publicationDate":"2020-06-01","publicationTypes":"Journal Article","fieldsOfStudy":null,"isOpenAccess":false,"openAccessPdf":"https://sci-hub-pdf.com/10.1177/1535676019899506","citationCount":null,"resultStr":null,"platform":"Semanticscholar","paperid":"33444278","PeriodicalName":null,"FirstCategoryId":null,"ListUrlMain":null,"RegionNum":0,"RegionCategory":"","ArticlePicture":[],"TitleCN":null,"AbstractTextCN":null,"PMCID":"OA","EPubDate":null,"PubModel":null,"JCR":null,"JCRName":null,"Score":null,"Total":0}

{"title":"Survivability of Wild-Type and Genetically Engineered <i>Thermosynechococcus elongatus</i> BP1 with Different Temperature Conditions.","authors":"Oumar Sacko,&nbsp;Cherrelle L Barnes,&nbsp;Lesley H Greene,&nbsp;James W Lee","doi":"10.1177/1535676019896640","DOIUrl":"https://doi.org/10.1177/1535676019896640","url":null,"abstract":"<p><strong>Introduction: </strong><i>Thermosynechococcus elongatus</i> BP1 is a thermophilic strain of cyanobacteria that has an optimum growth at 57°C, and according to previous analysis by Yamaoka et al, <i>T elongatus</i> BP1 cannot survive at a temperature below 30°C. This suggests that the thermophilic property of this strain may be used as a natural biosafety feature to limit the spread of genetically engineered (GE) organisms in the environment if physical containment fails.</p><p><strong>Objective: </strong>To further explore the growth and survivability range of <i>T elongatus</i> BP1, we report a growth and survivability assay of wild-type and GE <i>T elongatus</i> BP1 strains under different conditions.</p><p><strong>Methods: </strong>Wild-type and GE <i>T elongatus</i> BP1 cultures were prepared and incubated in the laboratory (high temperatures and constant light source) and greenhouse conditions (lower/varied temperatures and sunlight) for 4 weeks. The cell density was monitored weekly by measuring the optical density at 730 nm (OD730). To assess the survivability, a sample of each culture was added to fresh media, placed in laboratory conditions (42.2°C and 30 µE m^-2 s^-1) in multi-well plates and observed for growth for up to three weeks. Lastly, the number of viable cells were determined by plating a diluted sample of the culture on solid media and counting colony-forming units (CFU) after 1 day, 2 weeks and 4 weeks of incubation in laboratory or greenhouse conditions.</p><p><strong>Results: </strong>Our experimental results demonstrated that growth was hindered but that the cells did not entirely die within 2 to 4 weeks at warm temperatures (31.42°C-36.27°C). The study also showed that 2 weeks of exposure to cool temperature conditions (15.44°C-25.30°C) was enough to cause complete death of GE <i>T elongatus</i> BP1. However, it took 2 to 4 weeks for the wild-type <i>T elongatus</i> BP1 cells to die.</p><p><strong>Conclusion: </strong>This study revealed that the thermophilic feature of the <i>T elongatus</i> BP1 may be used as an effective biosafety mechanism at a cool temperature between 15.44°C and 25.30°C but may not be able to serve as a biosafety mechanism at warmer temperatures.</p>","PeriodicalId":520561,"journal":{"name":"Applied biosafety : journal of the American Biological Safety Association","volume":" ","pages":"104-117"},"PeriodicalIF":1.5,"publicationDate":"2020-06-01","publicationTypes":"Journal Article","fieldsOfStudy":null,"isOpenAccess":false,"openAccessPdf":"https://sci-hub-pdf.com/10.1177/1535676019896640","citationCount":null,"resultStr":null,"platform":"Semanticscholar","paperid":"33444275","PeriodicalName":null,"FirstCategoryId":null,"ListUrlMain":null,"RegionNum":0,"RegionCategory":"","ArticlePicture":[],"TitleCN":null,"AbstractTextCN":null,"PMCID":"OA","EPubDate":null,"PubModel":null,"JCR":null,"JCRName":null,"Score":null,"Total":0}