Biological safety cabinets (BSCs) are designed to protect the operator, the laboratory environment and work materials from exposure to infectious aerosols and splashes that may be generated when manipulating materials containing infectious agents, such as primary cultures, stocks and diagnostic specimens BSCs.
It is important to use biological Cabinets in uk when:
- Restriction of aerosol release
-Protection of the experiment itself
- Radiation risks
-Dangerous biological substances
Biological Cabinets reduce the levels of contamination in laboratories and reduce the risks to which workers are exposed.
.There are three different types of Biological Cabinets, so choose the cabinets that best suits the nature of the work and be sure to use it according to the instructions.
• Cabinet with air flow from the room inside: A Cabinet with an open front opening on which a lid can be mounted for use with or without gloves. Its main disadvantage is that it does not impart sterility to the product.
• Cabinet with internal airflow: This Cabinet also has an open front opening, but the air flowing on the work surface is well filtered through a special filter and emitted back into the work environment. The advantage of this Cabinet lies in the protection of the worker and the sterile environment.
Cabinet with glove boxes compartments: This cabinet has glove boxes compartments at the highest level. An advanced filtration system filters the incoming and outgoing air, and there is maximum protection for the worker and the sterility of the products.
Types of biological Cabinets
-Biosafety Level 1 (BSL-1) is needed when working with “defined and characterized strains of viable biological agents that are not known to cause disease in immunocompetent adult humans”
-Biosafety Level 2 (BSL-2) is required with “moderate-risk agents that cause human disease of varying severity by ingestion or through percutaneous or mucous membrane exposure”-
Biosafety Level 3 (BSL-3) is necessary for “agents with a known potential for aerosol transmission, for agents that may cause serious and potentially lethal infections, and that are indigenous or exotic in origin.”-
-Biosafety Level 4 (BSL-4) is used when scientists work with exotic agents “that pose a high individual risk of life-threatening disease by infectious aerosols and for which no treatment is available.
Biological Safety Cabinet Applications
They are utilised by a wide range of scientific, research and development organisations within both the commercial and non-commercial sectors, including pharmaceutical, medical, clinical research, defence, education and general healthcare sectors.
Advantages Biological safety cabinets
-Isolating equipment for biomedical research
-Occupational hygiene and safety
-Laboratory equipment performance testing
-Environmental cleanliness
-Safety devices for biological hazard prevention
-Disease de-contamination and prevention
