Lab Safety and Good Scientifc Practice, Day 44

Laboratory safety is 𝘮𝘰𝘳𝘦 𝘵𝘩𝘢𝘯 𝘤𝘰𝘮𝘱𝘭𝘪𝘢𝘯𝘤𝘦 — 𝘪𝘵’𝘴 𝘢 𝘤𝘶𝘭𝘵𝘶𝘳𝘦 𝘢𝘯𝘥 𝘢 𝘤𝘰𝘳𝘯𝘦𝘳𝘴𝘵𝘰𝘯𝘦 𝘰𝘧 𝘳𝘦𝘱𝘳𝘰𝘥𝘶𝘤𝘪𝘣𝘭𝘦 𝘴𝘤𝘪𝘦𝘯𝘤𝘦. From biosafety levels (S1–S3) to routine handling of reagents, every action we take influences the validity of our results and the safety of everyone around us. 

𝗙𝗼𝘂𝗻𝗱𝗮𝘁𝗶𝗼𝗻𝘀 𝗼𝗳 𝗟𝗮𝗯 𝗦𝗮𝗳𝗲𝘁𝘆 
A safe lab begins with standard PPE — gloves, lab coats, and proper waste segregation, including a separate container for sharp objects [1]! Maintaining clean benches, labeling all reagents, and ensuring proper storage conditions are crucial not only for safety but also for data integrity [2].  

𝗚𝗼𝗼𝗱 𝗦𝗰𝗶𝗲𝗻𝘁𝗶𝗳𝗶𝗰 𝗣𝗿𝗮𝗰𝘁𝗶𝗰𝗲 (𝗚𝗦𝗣) 
Good Scientific Practice emphasizes 𝘳𝘦𝘴𝘱𝘰𝘯𝘴𝘪𝘣𝘪𝘭𝘪𝘵𝘺, 𝘥𝘰𝘤𝘶𝘮𝘦𝘯𝘵𝘢𝘵𝘪𝘰𝘯, 𝘢𝘯𝘥 𝘵𝘳𝘢𝘯𝘴𝘱𝘢𝘳𝘦𝘯𝘤𝘺. When mistakes happen – the correct response is immediate reporting, not ignorance. Every scientist occasionally misjudges a step or forgets a control, but how we react determines our professionalism [3]. 

𝗠𝘆 𝗔𝗻𝗲𝗰𝗱𝗼𝘁𝗲: 𝗧𝗵𝗲 ´𝗖𝗲𝗻𝘁𝗿𝗶𝗳𝘂𝗴𝗲 𝗧𝗵𝗮𝘁 𝗡𝗲𝘃𝗲𝗿 𝗦𝘁𝗮𝗿𝘁𝗲𝗱´ 
Once, during my flow cytometry days, I thought I had centrifuged my cells. I closed the centrifuge lid, set the parameters, but apparently never pressed ´Start´. After some time, I was wondering why the centrifuge was not beeping, but I took out the tube, removed the ´supernatant´ with the suction pump and realized there was no pellet — because my cells were still suspended! I had pipetted my entire culture down the drain. 

Instead of hiding it, I immediately reported the mistake, following GSP principles. My supervisor appreciated the honesty and instructed me to thaw another vial from the cryo tank. Transparency builds trust and maintains the credibility of science.  

𝗕𝗲𝘆𝗼𝗻𝗱 𝗖𝗼𝗺𝗽𝗹𝗶𝗮𝗻𝗰𝗲 
True safety isn’t enforced by rules alone — it’s a mindset. A lab that promotes open communication about errors, encourages near-miss reporting, and values integrity creates an environment where both people and data thrive [4].  

𝗤𝘂𝗲𝘀𝘁𝗶𝗼𝗻 𝗳𝗼𝗿 𝘁𝗵𝗲 𝗮𝘂𝗱𝗶𝗲𝗻𝗰𝗲: What’s one ´lesson learned the hard way´ that made you rethink your lab routine?   

Stay tuned for 𝗗𝗮𝘆 𝟰𝟱: 𝗟𝗮𝗯 𝗠𝗲𝘁𝗵𝗼𝗱𝘀 𝘁𝗵𝗮𝘁 𝗧𝗲𝘀𝘁 𝗬𝗼𝘂𝗿 𝗣𝗮𝘁𝗶𝗲𝗻𝗰𝗲   

𝗥𝗲𝗳𝗲𝗿𝗲𝗻𝗰𝗲𝘀 
1. https://iris.who.int/server/api/core/bitstreams/41034b03-94b4-4fd6-9c6b-7662117127ac/content 
2. https://www.oecd.org/content/dam/oecd/en/publications/reports/1998/01/oecd-principles-on-good-laboratory-practice_g1gh32e8/9789264078536-en.pdf 
3. https://www.ema.europa.eu/en/ich-e6-good-clinical-practice-scientific-guideline 
4. https://doi.org/10.1371/journal.pone.0127556   

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