A Lab Technician’s Insights on Biosafety and Best Practices
October’s Biosafety and Biosecurity Month gave us a remarkable opportunity to connect with some of the most safety-conscious teams in our research community. We sat down with biological labs that have set the bar high, demonstrating what it means to prioritize safety, compliance, and a shared responsibility for a secure lab environment. These conversations weren’t just about protocols—they were about the culture that makes safety second nature.
What stood out the most during these interviews was how these bio-labs showcased not only their successes, but also the challenges they’ve faced, turning these discussions into powerful opportunities for mutual learning.
Safety goes beyond checklists—it’s about building community. By sharing experiences and strategies, we all grow stronger.
Watch the video below to hear the insights from Research Assistant and Lab Technician Alara Nelson.
Dr. Andreia Marina Ionescu is a Principal Investigator and an Assistant Professor of Biology at Northeastern University. Her dedicated team includes Research Assistant and interviewee, Alara Nelson, who received her BA in Biology from Wheaton College.
The Ionescu Lab studies cartilage development, function, and repair within the skeletal system. Fetal cartilage templates shape future bones, with growth plate cartilage driving limb elongation and articular cartilage supporting joint function. To address growth plate injuries that cause skeletal abnormalities, the lab develops stem cell-based repair therapies. In osteoarthritis, a joint disease causing irreversible cartilage damage, the lab investigates molecular mechanisms to design better treatments. Additionally, it examines transcriptional regulation at the cartilage-bone interface to understand skeletal growth.