Biotechnology

Biotechnology is technology based on biology, especially when used in agriculture, food science, and medicine. The United Nations Convention on Biological Diversity has come up with one of many definitions of biotechnology
It is often used to refer to genetic engineering technology of the 21st century, however the term encompasses a wider range and history of procedures for modifying biological organisms according to the needs of humanity, going back to the initial modifications of native plants into improved food crops through artificial selection and hybridization. Bioengineering is the science upon which all Biotechnological applications are based. With the development of new approaches and modern techniques, traditional biotechnology industries are also acquiring new horizons enabling them to improve the quality of their products and increase the productivity of their systems.

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Generally, any technique that is used to make or modify the products of living organisms in order to improve plants or animals, or to develop useful microorganisms. In modern terms, biotechnology has come to mean the use of cell and tissue culture, cell fusion, molecular biology, and in particular, recombinant deoxyribonucleic acid (DNA) technology to generate unique organisms with new traits or organisms that have the potential to produce specific products. Some examples of products in a number of important disciplines are described below.

Recombinant DNA technology has opened new horizons in the study of gene function and the regulation of gene action. In particular, the ability to insert genes and their controlling nucleic acid sequences into new recipient organisms allows for the manipulation of these genes in order to examine their activity in unique environments, away from the constraints posed in their normal host. Genetic transformation normally is achieved easily with microorganisms; new genetic material may be inserted into them, either into their chromosomes or into extrachromosomal elements, the plasmids. Thus, bacteria and yeast can be created to metabolize specific products or to produce new products. See also Gene; Gene action; Plasmid.

Genetic engineering has allowed for significant advances in the understanding of the structure and mode of action of antibody molecules. Practical use of immunological techniques is pervasive in biotechnology. See also Antibody.

Few commercial products have been marketed for use in plant agriculture, but many have been tested. Interest has centered on producing plants that are resistant to specific herbicides. This resistance would allow crops to be sprayed with the particular herbicide, and only the weeds would be killed, not the genetically engineered crop species. Resistances to plant virus diseases have been induced in a number of crop species by transforming plants with portions of the viral genome, in particular the virus's coat protein.

Biotechnology also holds great promise in the production of vaccines for use in maintaining the health of animals. Interferons are also being tested for their use in the management of specific diseases.

Animals may be transformed to carry genes from other species including humans and are being used to produce valuable drugs. For example, goats are being used to produce tissue plasminogen activator, which has been effective in dissolving blood clots.

Plant scientists have been amazed at the ease with which plants can be transformed to enable them to express foreign genes. This field has developed very rapidly since the first transformation of a plant was reported in 1982, and a number of transformation procedures are available.

Genetic engineering has enabled the large-scale production of proteins which have great potential for treatment of heart attacks. Many human gene products, produced with genetic engineering technology, are being investigated for their potential use as commercial drugs. Recombinant technology has been employed to produce vaccines from subunits of viruses, so that the use of either live or inactivated viruses as immunizing agents is avoided. Cloned genes and specific, defined nucleic acid sequences can be used as a means of diagnosing infectious diseases or in identifying individuals with the potential for genetic disease. The specific nucleic acids used as probes are normally tagged with radioisotopes, and the DNAs of candidate individuals are tested by hybridization to the labeled probe. The technique has been used to detect latent viruses such as herpes, bacteria, mycoplasmas, and plasmodia, and to identify Huntington's disease, cystic fibrosis, and Duchenne muscular dystrophy. It is now also possible to put foreign genes into cells and to target them to specific regions of the recipient genome. This presents the possibility of developing specific therapies for hereditary diseases, exemplified by sickle-cell anemia.

Modified microorganisms are being developed with abilities to degrade hazardous wastes. Genes have been identified that are involved in the pathway known to degrade polychlorinated biphenyls, and some have been cloned and inserted into selected bacteria to degrade this compound in contaminated soil and water. Other organisms are being sought to degrade phenols, petroleum products, and other chlorinated compounds.