biological safety cabinet


biological safety cabinet

A term for an enclosed and ventilated workspace in a microbiology lab, which is designed to contain pathogens. They are classified according to the protection they provide and the pathogens they are equipped to handle.
Types, biological safety cabinets 
Class I—provide protection for personnel and environment, but not the specimen itself. The airflow may be ducted externally or filtered and exhausted back into the laboratory.
Class II—provide protection for both personnel and equipment as well as the specimen. They are subdivided into 4 types: A1, A2, B1, B2, which are defined by National Science Foundation International Standard 49.
Class III—deployed only in maximum-containment laboratories and specifically designed for Biosafety Level 4 (Hazard Group 4 in the UK) pathogens, which include agents that cause Bolivian and Argentine haemorrhagic fevers, Marburg virus, Ebola virus, Lassa fever, Crimean-Congo haemorrhagic fever, smallpox, and other haemorrhagic diseases.