Biocontainment Facilities
Laboratories for proposed biohazardous materials work are designed to contain these materials.
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There are four defined biosafety levels: BSL-1, BSL-2, BSL-3 and BSL-4. The biosafety level is determined from a combination of lab practices and techniques, safety equipment, and laboratory facility.
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The CDC/NIH publication Biosafety in Microbiological and Biomedical Laboratories describes the criteria for different biosafety levels in detail.
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The NIH publication Guidelines for Research Involving Recombinant or Synthetic Nucleic Acid Molecules describes containment criteria for work with recombinant or synthetic nucleic acids.
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For more information on containment please refer to the Biosafety Manual.