Our Safety Training

We learnt the following in our safety training: - 1) Orientation of lab: We are extensively told about the location of the cold room, freezers, incubators, LAFs, fire exit and various equipment we might need in the course of our work(Micropipettes, Beakers, Eppendorfs, falcons,test-tubes, etc.) 2) Use of Equipments: We were taught how to use the LAF (UV treatment for 15 minutes, Wiping of work surface with ethanol, keeping the area in front of the air flow empty, etc.), the Cold Room (How to control the temperature and accessing the safety latch in case we are stuck inside and the door locks), the Autoclave machine, the fire extinguisher, the centrifuge, the incubators . 3) General Lab Etiquette: We were given instructions of how to use various hand held equipment: The micro pipettes, the glass spreaders, the Bunsen burners. What practices to adopt when working inside of the LAF (keeping proper ventilation, sterilizing everything, washing hands with alcohol,etc.). We were also informed of some other general rules of a Level 1 Bio safety Lab (Not storing or consuming food inside of the lab, avoiding splashing, etc.). Our instructor also made us go through the following links. (http://www.cdc.gov/training/quicklearns/biosafety/) (https://www.cdc.gov/biosafety/publications/bmbl5/bmbl5_sect_iv.pdf) 4) Protocol Specific Instructions: As our team comprised of undergraduates from various fields of work, our instructor patiently explained the small subtleties of all common protocols that we would follow during the summer. He gave us training for Transformation(How to operate the Centrifuge and the Heater), preparation of competent cells, plate spreading, etc. and also told us where and how we should store the things that we will require over the course of our work. 5. Fire Event: We were given instructions as to what we should do in case of a fire in the lab. We were provided with the contact numbers of the campus security and were also taught how to use a fire extinguisher.