Biosafety

Each organism distributed by CNCTC is assigned the respective biosafety level to be used for the safe handling of the specimen in the laboratory meeting the requirements of good practice, safety equipment, and design, pursuant to EU Council Directive 2000/54/EC on the protection of workers from risks related to exposure to biological agents at work (http://eur-lex.europa.eu/).

Biosafety level 1, BSL-1, is suitable for work involving well-characterized agents not known to consistently cause disease in healthy adult humans. The handling of these agents is feasible under standard safety rules applicable to BSL-1laboratory work.

Biosafety level 2, BSL-2, is suitable for work involving agents with potential for causing disease in humans. Such cultures shall be handled under specific stringent safety rules applicable to BSL-2 laboratory work.

Biosafety level 3, BSL-3, is suitable for work involving causative agents of serious diseases needing to be handled under specific containment rules applicable to BSL-3 laboratory work.
For more details on the biosafety levels, see the following website dedicated to EU legislation applicable to risks from exposure to biological agents at work http://eur-lex.europa.eu/en/index.htm or the website of the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) http://www.cdc.gov/od/ohs/biosfty/bmbl5/bmbl5toc.htm.