BioSafety Level Criteria Table
| BSL | Agents | Practices | Safety Equipment (Primary Barriers) | Facilities (Secondary Barriers) |
| 1 | Not known to consistently cause disease in healthy adults | Standard Microbiological Practices | None required | Open bench top sink required |
| 2 | Associated with human disease, hazard = percutaneous injury, ingestion, mucous membrane exposure | BSL-1 practice plus:
| Primary barriers = Class I or II BSCs or other physical containment devices used for all manipulations of agents that cause splashes or aerosols of infectious materials; PPE: laboratory coats, gloves, and face protection as needed | BSL-1 plus: Autoclave available |
| 3 | Indigenous or exotic agents with potential for aerosol transmission; disease may have serious or lethal consequences | BSL-2 practice plus:
| Primary barriers = Class I or II BSCs or other physical containment devices used for all open manipulations of agents; PPE: protective lab clothing, gloves, and respiratory protection as needed | BSL-2 plus:
|
| 4 | Dangerous/exotic agents which pose high risk of life-threatening disease, aerosol-transmitted lab infections; or related agents with unknown risk of transmission | BSL-3 practice plus:
| Primary barriers = All procedures conducted in Class III BSCs or Class I or II BSCs in combination with full-body, air-supplied, positive pressure personnel suit | BSL-3 plus:
|
Note: There are no BSL-4 facilities at the University of Missouri.