Team Southampton Safety Assessment

iGEM 2009 Team:Southampton answers the safety considerations issued by iGEM HQ.

• Would any of your project ideas raise safety issues in terms of:

• researcher safety,

• public safety, or

• environmental safety?

Team:Southampton has fully considered the safety implications of both the wetlab and outreach legacy components of their project, submitting detailed risk assessments and genetically modified organism (GMO) project application forms to the University of Southampton biological safety officer. All aspects of the project have been fully approved by the university biological safety officer, and as such, Team:Southampton are confident that no element of their project would raise safety issues relevant to researchers, the public, or the environment.

• Is there a local biosafety group, committee, or review board at your institution?

The University of Southampton has a health and safety office with dedicated biological safety officer, and there is a Genetic Modification and Biosafety Committee that regularly meets to review university projects and project applications.

• What does your local biosafety group think about your project?

The University of Southampton’s biological safety officer agreed with the project GMO form submissions, deeming the Team:Southampton project as Activity Class 1, and as such, was happy for work to commence, without the need to inform the UK Health and Safety Executive (HSE). The University of Southampton Genetically Modified and Biosafety Committee reviewed both the wetlab and outreach legacy GMO forms, approving both applications under Activity Class 1.

• Do any of the new BioBrick parts that you made this year raise any safety issues?

• If yes, did you document these issues in the Registry?

None of the new BioBrick parts made by Team:Southampton for iGEM 2009 raised any safety issues, and as such, no safety issues have been documented in the Registry.