Institut Pasteur Korea Wins the Minister Prize at Bio-safety Laboratory Management Know-how Contest

Sep. 11, 2013, Republic of Korea…..Institut Pasteur Korea announced that it was awarded the grand prize, the Minister Prize, at the Bio Safety Laboratory Management Know-how Contest. The contest was held for the purpose of establishing a professional and standardized bio-safety culture across laboratories in Korea through exchanging know-how and information. It was organized and supervised by the Ministry of Science, ICT and Future Technology and the LMO Research Safety Center in Korean Research Institute of Bioscience and Biotechnology (KRIBB), and over 50 institutes participated.

Institut Pasteur Korea, a member of the Institut Pasteur International Network encompassing 32 research and public health institutes on five continents, was founded through collaboration between the Korean government and the Institut Pasteur in France, a world leader in infectious diseases biomedical research. At the early design stage of its independent research facility, Institut Pasteur Korea has selectively adopted advanced bio-safety systems supported by the expertise of foreign researchers trained in leading institutes, including Institut Pasteur, and it has successfully established an international-standard bio-safety laboratory system efficiently applicable to local research environments and policies. The stabilized and standardized bio-safety laboratory system has provided fundamental hardware required for facilitating and expanding international collaborations with partners in academia and industries.

In order to maintain efficient and sustainable bio-safety systems, Institut Pasteur Korea has constituted multiple practical working groups and implemented effective personnel management and training programs: Bio-safety at Institut Pasteur Korea is managed by a team of two experienced professionals who are responsible for integrated bio-safety laboratory system management of the entire institute, a Bio-safety Committee which is constituted of microbiologists and skilled BSL-3 laboratory management professionals, and trained researchers with a biology major for onsite support.

In 2009, Institut Pasteur Korea both established the nation’s only BSL-2 facility with negative pressure and opened the first-certified BSL-3 laboratory. The advanced facilities of Institut Pasteur Korea has not only allowed researchers to study in depth infectious pathogens and various living modified organisms in a hazardous-free environment but also contributed to the acceleration of advancement of Korean laboratory systems and research facilities. In particular, over 70 research centers in Korea have visited Institut Pasteur Korea to benchmark its innovative research facilities between the years 2009 and 2012.

Dr. Jiyoung Kang, safety team leader, said, “Institut Pasteur Korea’s bio-safety management system comprises not only protocols and a few dedicated safety professionals but relies on the practical and continuous efforts of each and every member of the institute. This is the secret know-how of the grand prize winning bio-safety laboratory management of Institut Pasteur Korea.”