Lab Safety and Cellular Biology Overview

PROPER DRESS

Avoid loose clothing and open toed shoes.

PPE

Lab coat, gloves, safety goggles.

EMERGENCY EQUIPMENT

Safety showers, eye wash stations, fire extinguishers, first aid kits.

FUME HOOD

Prevents inhalations of harmful vapors.

NO EATING/DRINKING

Avoids contamination.

ATTENTION TO DETAIL

Read labels and instructions; double-check works.

NO HORSEPLAYS

Can lead to accidents.

LABELING

Properly label information.

STORAGE

Store according to hazard class; incompatible ones should be stored separately.

ELECTRICAL SAFETY

Check before use; avoid overloading circuits.

SHARP CARE

Handle with care; dispose in designated containers.

GROUP 1

Unlikely to cause human disease.

GROUP 2

Can cause human disease but is unlikely to spread; effective treatment available.

GROUP 3

Causes severe human diseases, serious hazard and may spread; effective treatment usually available.

GROUP 4

Causes severe human disease, high risk and spreads; no effective treatment.

MICROPIPETTE TYPES

Adjustable volume (adjusts range), fixed volume (automatic 1 micrometer), single channel (dispensing; one tip), multichannel (dispensing; multiple tips), manual, and electronic.

MICROPIPETTE USAGE

Transfers liquid in microliter range.

LIGHT MICROSCOPE

Bright field - basic; stained sections, dark field - live, unstained specimens, phase contrast - transparent specimens, fluorescence - high intensity light.

TEM

High magnification; internal structures.

SEM

3D images of surface textures.

PROKARYOTIC CELLS

Less developed; absent nucleus; nucleoid containing DNA or RNA; absent organelles; 0.1 to 0.5 mm; asexual; bacteria and archaea.

EUKARYOTIC CELLS

More developed; present nucleus; true nucleus containing DNA; membrane-bound organelles; 10-100 mm; sexual and asexual; animals, plants, fungi, protists.

DNA

Double-stranded, ladder-like; deoxyribose; thymine base; stores genetic info.

RNA

Single-stranded; ribose; uracil base; protein synthesis and gene regulation.

ANIMAL CELL

Contains nucleus, mitochondria, ER, RER, SER, Golgi apparatus, lysosome, cytoskeleton, plasma membrane, and peroxisome.

PLANT CELL

Same structures as animal cells but with additional features: cell wall, chloroplast, central vacuole, plasmodesmata.

CELLULAR DIVISION

Parent cell duplicates to produce two or more daughter cells; functions include growth, development, tissue repair, and reproduction.

MEIOSIS

Cell divides twice to create four cells; produces gametes which have the chromosomes of diploid individuals; reduces the number of chromosomes to one half.

MITOSIS

Cell duplication or reproduction; duplication and distribution of chromosomes.

BINARY FISSION

Asexual reproduction; organism duplicates DNA up to cytokinesis with each new organism receiving one copy of DNA.