Research involving biological toxins with a mammalian LD 50 of < 100 ug/kg body weight requires approval by the Institutional Biosafety Committee. Submit your protocol to KUALI (https://www.umass.edu/research/e-systems). Some biological toxins may be regulated by the Federal Select Agent Program, (https://www.selectagents.gov/sat/index.htm), due to their potential to pose a severe threat to public health and safety. Possession, use, and transfer of these toxins is highly regulated. The complete list of Select Agents and Toxins can be found here (https://www.selectagents.gov/sat/list.htm).
In small quantities, some of these toxins are exempt from select agent registration in permissible amounts (https://www.selectagents.gov/sat/permissible.htm). Please note that possession, use, or transfer of any select agent toxin, in any quantity, must be registered with the IBC in KUALI.
An SOP for working with acute biological toxins is available (https://ehs.umass.edu/acute-biological-toxins-sop) and provides the necessary guidance for meeting the requirements of the UMass Amherst Biological Toxins Program. You may find additional information within the UMass Amherst Biosafety Manual (https://ehs.umass.edu/sites/default/files/Biosafety%20Manual.pdf)