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Institutional Biosafety Committee

The responsibilities of the Institutional Biosafety Committee (IBC) are to:

• Verify the risk group classification and biosafety level required for research and teaching activities involving biohazard;
• Assure that all supervisors are aware of and comply with laboratory safety practices required at the prescribed level of biosafety, have adequate containment equipment and facilities, and train their personnel.

IBC oversight at UMMC

The Institutional Biosafety Committee (IBC) is responsible for oversight of the institution's recombinant DNA research. The IBC ensures compliance with the National Institutes of Health (NIH) guidelines. IBCs are required for all institutions that accept NIH funding for research that involves recombinant DNA.

The IBC also oversees research that involves microbiological hazards and ensures that investigators comply with guidelines, Biosafety in Microbiological and Biomedical Laboratories (BMBL), provided by the Centers for Disease Control (CDC).

Criteria for IBC registration

• Recombinant DNA
• Pathogenic microorganisms
  • Activities that involve propagation or manipulation of microorganisms that are pathogenic in humans
• Primate/human cells or tissue
  • Activities that involve handling of non-human primates
  • Activities involving primate/human cells and tissue that may harbor pathogenic microorganisms