Levels of Total Airborne Bacteria, Gram-Negative Bacteria, and Endotoxin According to Biosafety Levels in Korean Biosafety Laboratories

ABSTRACT

We assessed in this study the total airborne bacteria (TAB), gram-negative bacteria (GNB), and endotoxin (ET) concentrations in three Korean university laboratories and two hospital diagnostic laboratories categorized as biosafety level 1 (BL 1) or biosafety level 2 (BL 2). We also investigated the concentrations of TAB, GNB, and ET relative to the performance results of biosafety cabinets (BSCs). TAB and GNB were incubated, and ET was analyzed using the kinetic Limulus amebocyte lysate assay. A total of 246 (TAB = 95, GNB = 95, ET = 56) air samples were collected from nine laboratories. TAB, GNB, and ET concentrations were significantly higher in BL 1 laboratories and in laboratories that failed the BSC performance test compared to BL 2 laboratories and laboratories that passed the BSC performance test. Correlation coefficients were calculated to determine the relationships between TAB, GNB, and ET, and it was found that TAB significantly correlated with GNB (r = 0.35, p < .01) and ET (r = 0.29, p < .01). Careful attention needs to be paid to BL 1 laboratories, and BSCs should be managed on a regular basis to improve the air quality of university and hospital laboratories.

Key Words:

• airborne bacteria
• biosafety cabinet
• endotoxin
• gram-negative bacteria.

ACKNOWLEDGMENT

This work was supported by the National Research Foundation of Korea (NRF) grant funded by the Korea government (MEST) (No. 2010-0029174) and was supported by the Korea Occupational Safety and Health Agency (KOSHA) (# 2009-51-1202).