SOP 14.12 - Procedures for Working Safely with Chemical Hazards

1. Introduction:

1. STRONG OXIDIZERS (such as Bleach/ Activated Hydrogen Peroxide) SHOULD NOT BE USED WITH DMBA TO AVOID ACTIVATION OF THE COMPOUND TO A MORE TOXIC FORM.
2. Eating, drinking, storing human food or utensils, applying cosmetics, and inserting or removing contact lenses is not permitted. No oral pipetting is allowed.
3. All procedures are conducted in Hood #1 which is the Class II Type B2 biological safety cabinet (BSC) that has been certified within the last year. This includes injections, anesthesia, euthanasia, and all cage changes.
4. A ready-to-use quaternary based broad spectrum disinfectant cleaner and sanitizer (brand name: ERADIK8) is used to coat the cages prior to cage washing.
5. When you enter the room, turn on the biosafety cabinet and let it sit for a minimum of 5 minutes prior to use, wipe down thoroughly with accelerated hydrogen peroxide (AHP) or the quaternary disinfectant. See  EH&S SOP-Biosafety-03-Biological Safety Cabinets for additional information on the use of the BSC.

Abbreviations: 

Animal Care Services ACS, Standard Operating Procedure SOP, Biological Safety Cabinet BSC, Accelerated Hydrogen Peroxide AHP

2. Room Entry and Exit Procedures:

1. Entry is restricted to trained animal care staff and research personnel.
2. PPE requirements:
   1. Shoe covers
   2. Disposable gown
   3. Hair bonnet
   4. Double nitrile gloves
   5. Level 2 ASTM surgical mask
       
3. Note: During cage changes, plastic sleeves may also be required.
4. PPE is donned in the anteroom before entering the room. The BSC is checked to ensure it is not alarming prior to use. If alarming, do not use and notify, Associate Director of Animal Care Services.
5. When exiting, PPE is removed and discarded into the autoclave bin at door and hands are thoroughly washed at the sink in the anteroom.
6. PPE is removed in the following order:
   1. Shoe covers
   2. 1^st pair of gloves
   3. Gown
   4. Hair bonnet
   5. Next pair of gloves
   6. Mask 

3. Rodent Care:

1. Cages are housed on a ventilated rack, with inward directional air flow.
2. Mice are checked daily for signs of illness. Any concerns are reported to the lab staff and a clinical case report is generated as per SOP.
3. Animal health checks are performed by visualizing the mice through the cage. If the cage is to be opened, it is brought to the BSC where the lid can be removed. When finished, the cage lid is closed while in the BSC, and then the cage is placed back on the rack in its designated space.
4. Any deaths are reported on the room mortality log and to the investigator.
5. Carcasses must be removed from the cage and are double bagged, labeled with a biohazard sticker and left in the BSC for the laboratory personnel to pick up (if needed), otherwise they are placed into the carcass freezer.
6. The cage must sit properly on the rack to be fully engaged for appropriate airflow and access to water.

4. Supplies:

1. Supplies stored in the room must be kept to a minimum.
2. Once inside the room, supplies must be decontaminated if they are to be removed (i.e. washed with the quaternary-based soap and allowed appropriate contact time) before bringing them out of the room.

5. Cage Changing:

1. Cages are changed once every other week
2. The cage is opened by removing the lid and placing it top side down, beside the cage
3. The food hopper and enrichment tubes are transferred to the clean cage
4. The cage lid is put back on the cage and returned to the rack
5. The cage must sit properly in the rack for appropriate airflow and access to water to occur.
6. While in the BSC, bedding from the dirty cage is dumped into a garbage bag, the empty cage is then coated inside and out with the quaternary-based soap.
7. The bag of dirty bedding is double bagged before leaving the hood, the outer bag is sprayed with AHP prior to removal from the biohazard suite and placed into the carcass freezer for later incineration.
8. While in the hood, bag the soapy cages.
9. Dirty bottles, lids and enrichment devices are coated inside and out with the quaternary-based soap and bagged before leaving the hood.
10. The outside of all caging bags are sprayed with AHP prior to removal from the biohazard suite and delivery to dirty cage wash. Excess AHP must be mopped up off the floors immediately after spraying bags down to avoid a chemical build up on the floors.