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Glite Dictionary
biosafety level

biosafety level

1 5.7
A level of safety rules and equipment in labs to prevent exposure to dangerous germs
  • noun
  • /ˈbaɪoʊˌseɪfti ˈlɛvəl/
  • Specialized
translation icon : nivel de bioseguridad
  • But handling such viruses requires a special lab—a biosafety level-3 (BSL-3)—designed to contain deadly viruses.
  • biosafety level 3

Examples

  • The researchers followed the Brazilian Institute for the Environment and Renewable Natural Resources guidelines for the capture and handling of rodents, using biosafety level 3 protocols.

    Academic text (2012)

  • Carcasses were thawed, and animals were dissected under Biosafety Level 3 conditions.

    Academic text (2014)

  • CDC/NIH's procedural and facility requirements increase as the biosafety level increases.

    Academic text (2003)

  • Virus handling was conducted under enhanced Biosafety Level 3 containment according to institutional guidelines.

    Academic text (2013)

  • All experiments were performed in a biosafety level 3-enhanced facility at the Animal and Plant Quarantine Agency, South Korea.

    Academic text (2015)

  • All procedures involving subtype H7N9 virus were performed in a Biosafety Level 3 laboratory. Written informed consent was obtained from all participants.

    Academic text (2014)

  • There are four biosafety levels (BL-1 through BL-4), with BL-2 being the minimum level for agents that are potentially infectious to humans.

    Academic text (2003)

  • The warning sign reads: BIOSAFETY LEVEL 3 - CONTAINMENT TO PETE

    Fiction book (1993)

  • The laboratory operates under a strict biosafety level to ensure the safety of researchers working with infectious materials.

  • To safely study highly contagious viruses, the scientists must comply with biosafety levels set by national health agencies.

Surface Forms

biosafety level singular
biosafety levels plural

Morphology

biosafety + level

The meaning is directly compositional: 'biosafety' denotes safety procedures against biological hazards and 'level' denotes a stage or degree, so 'biosafety level' straightforwardly denotes a specific stage/degree of biosafety. Although it is a technical term, the noun+noun/‘of’ relation is regular and found cross-linguistically (e.g. 'nivel de bioseguridad'), so a B1 learner who knows the constituents can infer the meaning.

Etymology

Biosafety level is like floors in a building: the part biosafety means protection from living germs and each higher level has more doors, filters and strict rules to keep people safe. So a 'biosafety level' number tells how much 'safety' a lab needs to work with a certain 'germ'.