Transcript Principles and Practices of Biosafety

Human and Other Primate
Cells and Tissues
Human Source Material
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Blood and blood products
Vaginal secretions
Semen
Amniotic fluid
Unfixed tissues
Cerebrospinal, synovial,
pleural, pericardial and
peritoneal fluids
Cell cultures
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Saliva
Urine
Tears
Sputum
Feces
Vomit
Other excretions and
secretions
Second column not covered in Bloodborne Pathogen Standard, possibly not
occupationally related.
Human Source Material
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May transmit infectious agents
Imperfect knowledge of infectious status
 Incubation period (asymptomatic)
 No test for every pathogen
Most tissues and body fluids
 Bloodborne Pathogens (HBV, HCV, HIV,
HTLV-1)
 Pathogens causing Malaria, Syphilis,
Babesiosis, Brucellosis, Leptospirosis,
Arboviral infections, Relapsing fever,
Creutzfeldt-Jacob disease and viral
hemorrhagic fever
Cell Culture Risks
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Contaminating pathogenic agents
 natural (often zoonotic) or inadvertent
 ~20 LAIs from primary cultures in last 30 years
 e.g., Herpes B (CHV-1), prions
Oncogenic potential
 could be oncogene or oncogenic agent
 e.g., HPV-18, MPMV genomes in HeLa cells
Unexpected (adventitious) agents
 e.g., SIV, STLV, SV5 in primate cells, HHV-8
in BCBL-1 cells
Hazardous chemicals added to culture medium
Cell Culture under Bloodborne
Pathogen Standard
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ABSA requested OSHA’s interpretation in 1994:
 Do human cell cultures fall under the
Bloodborne Pathogen (BBP) Standard?
Response:
 All primary human cell cultures (explants) and
subsequent in vitro passages fall under the
BBP Standard
 To be exempted from the BBP requirements,
cell strains and lines must undergo testing and
characterization (documented) for bloodborne
pathogens (not just HBV, HCV and HIV)
Cell Culture Safety
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Extend Universal/Standard Precautions to all
human and animal cell cultures
 Consider working at BSL 2 (most work
there already to protect the cell cultures)
 Handle all cultures in a biosafety cabinet
 If human origin and not demonstrated to
be free of human bloodborne pathogens,
adhere to requirements of the BBP Standard
 Wear PPE appropriate to human source material
Summary
Human Source Materials
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May be regulated
Can be biohazardous
Use Universal Precautions at
all times
Visible blood means
increased risk
Don’t consider “normal”
source
Human and Nonhuman Primate Cell
Cultures
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Treat human cultures as
possible biohazards
Beware of non-human
primate cells
Beware of CNS, corneal,
pituitary cells
Some cells may be OK at
BSL 1