It allows scientists to edit genes in living cells. The precision of the edits CRISPR carries out has acted like an accelerant in life sciences research. Related technology and techniques continue to be widely shared.
DNA manipulations are important analytical activities in a broad range of occupational disciplines, including botany, public health, forensics, agriculture, pharmacology, zoology and molecular biology of many stripes.
From a post to an online forum:
“I’m pretty sure every lab on campus is now using CRISPR.”
The Broad Institute website provides a range of CRISPR related information.
Clean, protective work spaces
Not every lab that will use CRISPR and other DNA manipulation techniques starts with a sparkling new facility.
And some well-exercised techniques, like PCR, continue their role within genome editing and analysis processes.
No remodeling, no dedicated ductwork
We design and manufacture ductless negative-pressure lab hoods to protect users and ductless positive-pressure lab hoods to protect the samples inside them.
They fit well into existing or re-purposed facilities because they don’t require expensive dedicated ductwork.
Additional lab furniture such as hood-specific pedestals is not required because we make our hoods in standard widths and depths that readily fit onto countertops.
However, because our hoods and fume extractors are products of modular design techniques, customization of dimensions and other features, such as tool-accommodating cut-outs in the sash, are cost-effective.
Ductless fume hoods
Safety Data Sheets (SDS) for reagents provide guidance regarding engineering controls for potentially hazardous exposure.
For example, an SDS for Lipofectamine® 2000, widely used for transfection, warns “harmful by inhalation” and “In case of insufficient ventilation wear suitable respiratory equipment.”
Handling a transfection reagent within our ductless fume hood means two things:
- The researcher tasked with transfection won’t inhale hazardous fumes.
- Hazardous fumes won’t spread throughout the lab.
Portable clean room (PCR) hoods for PCR
Lab protocols play a key role in the prevention of amplicon contamination.
Separation of PCR from other lab procedures is important, even if your facility can’t offer a separate space specifically designed for PCR processes.
Sentry Air Portable Clean Room Hoods come in standard widths but can be customized to house specific thermocyclers.
In most instances, our PCR Hoods use our Model 300 fume extractor to filter the air entering the hood. (In an engineered nanoparticle production facility, the ventilation provided by a single Model 300 was deemed highly effective at capturing nano-scale particles and reducing potential worker exposure.)
Engineered air solves facility problems
If CRISPR efficiencies are creating rationale to expand your labs into facilities initially designed for other activities, consider coupling ambient air cleaners with portable lab hoods.
Ceiling-mounted ambient air cleaners capture renegade fumes.
They are especially effective when installed to create an airflow pattern that continually pulls a room’s air through filters that capture both particles and chemical fumes.
Like our lab hoods, the Model 700 can be configured with activated carbon filters.
In our industry, filtration tests are called efficiency tests. We test a filter against a particular chemical and report the results as a percentage, as in 99.7% efficient against diethyl ether, meaning the filtration trapped 99.7% of the subject chemical when tested as documented.
We regularly test the efficiency of our hoods against common laboratory chemicals and publish the results on our website.
Sometimes our customers test our products. Here’s a link to the test results of a customer lab using isoflurane.
Set up your lab quickly
If you need to grow your lab in a hurry, talk with our applications specialists about your portable hood options.
When they propose a solution for a specific lab application, it is based on their expertise, our in-house testing, and the feedback and testing of our customers.
Call our specialists at 800.799.4609 or email email@example.com.
You can also use the feedback form on this page to contact them.
The Crispr Quandary
Learn how particle filters work
Extract Your Own DNA