Laminar Flow Hoods- Biological safety units

1. Laminar Flow Hoods- Biological safety units Laminar Flow hoodshappen to be one of the most embedded systems, widely used in laboratories. These units are mainly seen in tissue culture labs, where the necessity of an evacuated and isolated space is highly needed for research purposes. These Are used to filter the ambiance around the working area and purify it to the maximum level possible. It is often seen that these enclosed cabinets are the central working unit in environmental, industrial, pharmaceutical, and educational labs. This laboratory unit ensures a germ-free environment for safer and reliable lab work. It also makes sure that any material inside the laminar hood is particulate-free and disinfected. Categories of Laminar flow hoods-Class I, Class II and Class III Based on the clinical and research requirements, three classes of Laminar flow hoods have been developed. All these classes are different in operating style and ensure more excellent reliability towards an aseptic environment. Class I- This category of laminar flow hoods provide a significant amount of protection to the person working in the laboratory. It also creates a safer and cleaner ambiance to work. Class-I laminar units are lower in efficiency in providing a contamination-free culture. Thus, these are primarily used to disinfect the lab room, rather than to use them to clean cultures. However, if used correctly with microbiological strategies, they give the best results. In terms of model and airflow features, they resemble chemical fume hoods in the laboratories. Class II- When it comes to dealing with BSL-1, 2, and 3 materials, Class II laminar units are the best. These units provide an aseptic lab environment and ensure 100% sanity in cell culture experiments. These units are also potent enough in handling bio hazardous materials like virally-infected cultures, primate-derived cell cultures, carcinogenic agents, radioisotopes, toxic substances, and various other potentially dangerous elements in the laboratory. Class III- This last category of airflow laminar cabinets are the most superior category, where a 100% evacuated gas-tight environment is easily attainable. The maximum level of protection is what these units are best at providing. These units get into use in highly professional and top-grade laboratories where working materials fall under the BSL-4 category. Working with human pathogens is also possible with the class-III laminar flow hoods. Airflow features of laminar flow hoods- The basic chemistry of these units The primary characteristic of laminar airflow hoods is to provide a safe and clean environment for laboratory practices. However, this level of protection is achieved through

2. a unique and constant flow of filtered air. Laminar flow hoods make use of a HEPA- filtered air blower that creates an airflow with uniform velocity and a parallel line of airflow. The direction of the airflow can be horizontal, with a parallel air blow over the working surface. It can also be a vertical air blow, blowing from top to bottom of the working space. Depending on this direction flow of filtered air, vertical and horizontal laminar flow hoods are available. The unique filter system has an inbuilt High-Efficiency Particulate Air (HEPA) filter. This HEPA filter is incredibly efficient in removing particulate matters, as small as 0.3-1 nm. The horizontal laminar hoods provide contamination and protection to the culture or the user, depending on the direction of the airflow. Whereas, the vertical laminar hoods offer equal protection to both the culture and the user. Some laminar flow hoods have unique Ultra Low Particulate Air (ULPA) filters. ULPA filters are efficient in removing particulate matters smaller than 1 nm in size. The basic layout of Laminar flow hoods- The stringent designing A laminar flow hood is large and spacious enough for a single user to carry out laboratory experiments comfortably. It is usually cleaned from both sides, keeping the working surface uncluttered and clean. Disinfecting the surface area is often done using 70% ethanol. There remains enough space in the working surface to keep associated equipment and lab apparatuses around while working. Sufficient light facilities are also fitted. Moreover, there are UV lights as well, which can keep the inside area of the laminar flow hood disinfected, when not in use. Safety precautions to be followed while using a laminar flow hood Laminar flow hoods are a basic necessity in tissue culture or microbiological laboratories. To be specific, any lab requiring an aseptic environment to carry out lab works requires a laminar flow hood. However, working with this lab equipment can be dangerous and hazardous as well. The HEPA or ULPA filters, which blow the air inside the cabinet, can end up blowing infected air towards the user (horizontal/vertical airflow chambers). It can result in infection of the user. Moreover, the UV light emitted from the laminar hood can be a potential risk to human genetic configuration. UV is already known to cause mutation in the genetic composition. Thus, one needs to be extremely careful and sincere while working with laminar flow hoods.