What is biosafety cabinet? List and explain briefly the different types of biosafety cabinet?

A biosafety cabinet is a type of containment equipment used in laboratories to provide a safe working environment for handling hazardous biological materials. It helps protect the user, the environment, and the samples being worked on.

There are three main types of biosafety cabinets:

1. Class I biosafety cabinet: This type of cabinet provides personnel and environmental protection, but not product protection. It is suitable for working with low to moderate risk biological agents. Class I cabinets have a negative pressure system that draws air into the cabinet, filtering it before releasing it back into the laboratory.

2. Class II biosafety cabinet: This type of cabinet provides personnel, environmental, and product protection. It is the most commonly used biosafety cabinet in laboratories and is suitable for working with moderate to high-risk biological agents. Class II cabinets have a high-efficiency particulate air (HEPA) filter system that filters the air before recirculating it back into the laboratory.

There are three subtypes of Class II biosafety cabinets:

- Type A1: Provides personnel and environmental protection, suitable for working with low to moderate risk biological agents.
- Type A2: Provides personnel, environmental, and product protection, suitable for working with moderate to high-risk biological agents.
- Type B2: Provides personnel, environmental, and product protection, suitable for working with high-risk biological agents and volatile chemicals.

3. Class III biosafety cabinet: This type of cabinet provides the highest level of protection for personnel, environment, and samples. It is a completely enclosed, gas-tight cabinet with glove ports for handling samples. Class III cabinets are used for working with highly infectious biological agents and require the use of full-body protective suits and a separate air supply.

Biosafety Cabinet (BSC)

A biosafety cabinet is a specialized type of laboratory equipment designed to provide containment and protection for laboratory personnel, the environment, and materials from potentially hazardous biological agents.

Types of Biosafety Cabinets

Class I BSC:

- Provides primary containment and protects the user from aerosols generated within the cabinet.
- Exhausts air from the cabinet's front opening to the outside.
- Suitable for work with low-risk biological agents that do not require full containment.

Class II BSC:

- Provides primary and secondary containment, protecting the user, the environment, and materials.
- Creates a sterile work zone within the cabinet using HEPA-filtered incoming and recirculated air.
- Exhausts air through a HEPA filter to the outside.
- Used for work with moderate-risk biological agents or where cross-contamination prevention is crucial.

Types of Class II BSCs:

- Type A2: HEPA-filtered air flows over the work surface and is exhausted through a HEPA filter.
- Type B2: HEPA-filtered air is drawn down over the work surface and exhausted through a HEPA filter.

Class III BSC:

- Provides the highest level of containment and protection.
- Encloses the work area completely in a gas-tight, negative-pressure environment.
- All operations are performed through glove ports.
- Used for work with highly hazardous biological agents that pose a significant risk of infection.