1 00:00:09,466 --> 00:00:10,326 >> Sally: What are you working on? 2 00:00:10,326 --> 00:00:11,616 >> Dude: I've got a great new idea. 3 00:00:11,616 --> 00:00:15,206 I'm going to make cocoa beans that reproduce as fast as viruses. 4 00:00:15,316 --> 00:00:19,006 That way, we'll have enough cocoa beans to make as much chocolate as we want! 5 00:00:19,256 --> 00:00:20,716 >> Sally: You know how much I like chocolate! 6 00:00:20,716 --> 00:00:22,826 Explain your project a little more. 7 00:00:23,056 --> 00:00:25,126 How are you going to engineer this yummy idea? 8 00:00:25,526 --> 00:00:28,856 >> Dude: Well viruses reproduce really fast so I thought I could take that part 9 00:00:28,856 --> 00:00:30,836 from a virus and put it into a cocoa plant. 10 00:00:31,206 --> 00:00:34,666 >> Sally: Plants are pretty safe to work with but viruses can be dangerous. 11 00:00:34,756 --> 00:00:36,706 Which virus were you thinking about using? 12 00:00:36,896 --> 00:00:39,366 >> Dude: Well I read that Ebola virus has a short sequence that... 13 00:00:39,366 --> 00:00:39,936 >> Sally: ...EBOLA!?! 14 00:00:40,226 --> 00:00:43,186 Ebola is a bio-safety level FOUR agent. 15 00:00:43,186 --> 00:00:46,176 >> Dude: Well the worst are level five, so I thought it was safe enough. 16 00:00:46,386 --> 00:00:47,336 >> Sally: Level five? 17 00:00:47,386 --> 00:00:49,496 There is no bio-safety level five. 18 00:00:49,606 --> 00:00:54,186 You'd need lots and lots of training to work in any level three or four facility... 19 00:00:54,296 --> 00:00:57,586 ...and you'd have to wait a few years since they don't let minors in those labs. 20 00:00:57,656 --> 00:01:00,136 >> Dude: DD: But there was this show I saw on TV where... 21 00:01:00,136 --> 00:01:03,196 >> Sally: What you see on TV and in movies can be very deceiving. 22 00:01:03,306 --> 00:01:05,626 But let's talk about all the bio-safety levels. 23 00:01:05,766 --> 00:01:09,236 If we're going to make your viral cocoa beans, we need to come up with a way 24 00:01:09,236 --> 00:01:12,516 that keeps everyone safe, inside the lab and outside too. 25 00:01:12,856 --> 00:01:13,516 >> Dude: OK. 26 00:01:13,676 --> 00:01:18,086 I do know that biosafety is a combination of safe lab practices and techniques, 27 00:01:18,176 --> 00:01:22,146 wearing the right safety equipment, and working in a lab designed to contain the experiment. 28 00:01:22,216 --> 00:01:24,956 But with biosafety level 1 that just means a room 29 00:01:24,956 --> 00:01:26,936 with screened windows and a door that closes. 30 00:01:26,986 --> 00:01:28,396 That doesn't sound like much. 31 00:01:28,486 --> 00:01:32,566 >> Sally: That's because BL1 experiments use only well-characterized microbes 32 00:01:32,566 --> 00:01:34,376 that don't make a healthy person sick. 33 00:01:34,526 --> 00:01:37,176 But remember, there's no eating or drinking in the lab 34 00:01:37,176 --> 00:01:39,836 since you wouldn't want to eat your experiments. 35 00:01:40,036 --> 00:01:42,306 >> Dude: When do I get to wear a lab coat like yours? 36 00:01:42,456 --> 00:01:46,485 >> Sally: If you're working at biosafety level 2, you'll have to wear it, and gloves, too, 37 00:01:46,485 --> 00:01:48,765 since some BL2 agents can be infectious. 38 00:01:48,906 --> 00:01:54,146 BL2 labs have impervious benches and most of the work is done in biological safety cabinets. 39 00:01:54,246 --> 00:01:58,816 Lots of BL2 workers also get immunizations if they'll be working with certain agents. 40 00:01:58,976 --> 00:02:00,956 >> Dude: I hate getting shots. 41 00:02:01,046 --> 00:02:04,126 >> Sally: Well, not all level 2 agents require immunizations. 42 00:02:04,216 --> 00:02:07,396 Really, the rules for BL1 and BL2 are pretty basic 43 00:02:07,466 --> 00:02:10,226 because the agents have minimal risk associated with them. 44 00:02:10,496 --> 00:02:13,476 But let's think for a minute about what biosafety you'd need 45 00:02:13,476 --> 00:02:15,696 for your mash-up of a virus with a cocoa plant. 46 00:02:16,036 --> 00:02:20,096 >> Dude: Well maybe more protective clothes, like the workers in bio-safety level 3 labs. 47 00:02:20,276 --> 00:02:23,246 They wear full suits and maybe masks or something. 48 00:02:23,336 --> 00:02:24,766 It's nothing I can't handle. 49 00:02:25,006 --> 00:02:27,506 Imagine me in a space suit! 50 00:02:27,776 --> 00:02:29,286 Very cool! 51 00:02:29,446 --> 00:02:31,626 And think about how much chocolate we'll have! 52 00:02:31,626 --> 00:02:32,996 >> Sally: Earth to Dude! 53 00:02:32,996 --> 00:02:38,646 Level three agents are very serious, potentially lethal, and level four agents, like Ebola virus, 54 00:02:38,646 --> 00:02:41,305 have such a high lethal risk that there are only a few places 55 00:02:41,305 --> 00:02:42,836 in the world where they are studied. 56 00:02:42,996 --> 00:02:45,966 Restrictions for working with these agents are very tight. 57 00:02:46,126 --> 00:02:50,516 Everything entering or leaving BL3 and BL4 labs has to be decontaminated. 58 00:02:50,706 --> 00:02:54,055 Sometimes the lab has to be in its own building to control foot traffic. 59 00:02:54,136 --> 00:02:57,526 I know I don't want to work where there are double door entries and airlock rooms. 60 00:02:57,676 --> 00:02:58,916 >> Dude: I think that sounds like fun... 61 00:02:59,136 --> 00:03:01,416 >> Sally: ...If you are so excited about the protective clothing, 62 00:03:01,416 --> 00:03:04,906 we can always be overly cautious in a level 1 or 2 facility. 63 00:03:04,906 --> 00:03:07,586 But can't we find another way to make more cocoa beans? 64 00:03:07,816 --> 00:03:08,826 >> Dude: OK. 65 00:03:09,036 --> 00:03:11,706 >> Sally: Maybe we can find another virus that's not so dangerous 66 00:03:11,706 --> 00:03:13,606 and we can keep working on your chocolate idea. 67 00:03:13,926 --> 00:03:15,286 Let's start looking in here.