Biotechnology is the field of biology that makes use of technology as well as application to living beings. Biotechnology is related to developing, modifying, and producing beneficial products for human welfare. It is one of the oldest industrial technologies that have ever been recorded. For example, the application of fermentation in alcohol production is a biological technique that has grown and expanded into genomics, recombinant gene methodologies, applied immunology, pharmaceuticals, and its applications that have extended across many fields like genetic engineering, agriculture, medicine, etc.
Biotechnology is also used in the form of bioinformatics to empower the field of research and development. This research is then used for the extraction and production of living entities through biochemical engineering.
The word biotechnology was used first in 1919 by Karl Ereky. It means products are produced from raw materials with the support of living organisms.
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Importance of Biotechnology
Biotechnology had advanced to various procedures over time like:
DNA Manipulation
Tissue Culture
Protoplast fusion
Protein Engineering
Call Catalysis
Immobilized enzymes
Biotechnology has led to the synthesis of several products and services for the welfare of mankind like:
Immunology
Biochemistry
Genetic engineering
Cell biology
Chemical engineering
Molecular biology
A few of the important and path-breaking contributions of biotechnology are given below:
DNA Vaccines
Plant tissue culture
Recombinant DNA technique
Production of Humulin
Invitro fertilization or test-tube baby
Principles of Biotechnology
The basic principles of biotechnology that initiated the inception of biotechnology are:
Genetic Engineering: The underlying principle used in this process is to alter the existing organisms by modifying the genetic makeup of the organism, which involves recombinant DNA technology. The biotech process involved in genetic engineering is given below:
Isolation of the DNA from the donor organism
DNA fragmentation using the restriction endonucleases
Ligation of the desired DNA fragment into the vector
Recombinant DNA is then transferred to the host
Culture of transformed cells in a nutrient medium
Extraction of the desired product
Chemical Engineering: The main point of distinction between biotechnology and chemical engineering is the scale of operation as mostly the products from biotechnology are low on the volume of biochemicals and high on value. Biotechnology increased the scope of pharmaceuticals, and its application has given excellent products in terms of quality as well as quantity. Examples include vaccines, enzymes, antibiotics, etc.
Biotechnology Process and Applications
Biotechnology has been used in different fields to modify and produce products for human welfare. The applications of biotechnology include:
Agriculture: The application of biotechnology in the field of agriculture gave way to the Green Revolution. The contribution of biotechnology in the field of agriculture includes organic agriculture, agrochemical-based agriculture, genetically engineered crop-based agriculture. Biotechnology has helped with tripling food production. It has also proved to be beneficial for the introduction of pest-resistant plants and genetically modified crops that increase food production and help to meet the needs of the growing human population.
Medicine: The involvement of recombinant DNA technology has permitted the mass production of safe and more effective therapeutic drugs. These drugs are produced as a result of genetic engineering. For example, Humulin, which is genetically modified insulin, is used to treat diabetes. Biotechnology has also developed a gene therapy that helps in the removal of genetic disorders in the embryo. Some other applications of biotechnology in medicine include PCR and ELISA.
Transgenic Animals: Transgenic animals are the ones in whom a new and altered gene has been inserted experimentally into the genome by the process of genetic engineering. A few examples of transgenic animals include pigs, sheep, cows, rats, rabbits, fish, etc. The aim that led to the creation of transgenic animals include:
To study the different types of diseases
For testing the safety of vaccines and toxicity of the drugs before they are used on the animals
For the production of biological products
To study the regulation of the genes and how they affect the normal functioning of the body and its development.
To study the contribution of the genes in the development of the genes
Aquaculture: Biotechnology helps in the improvement of life and the quantity of fish. The gonadotropin-releasing hormone is introduced in the fish to enhance the breeding, which helps in enhancing the growth and genetic characteristics. It also assists in preventing a number of diseases.
Antibiotics: Biotechnology helps in the production of antibiotics, vaccines, artificial hormones with the use of plants. The Genes with the desired characteristics are induced into the plants to manufacture the encoded proteins. The edible vaccines are cost-effective, can be easily stored, and are administered in the body. They are used in the treatment of diseases like hepatitis, cholera, measles, etc.
History of Biotechnology
Agriculture in theory has been told as a primary way of producing food from the time of the Neolithic age. In the early days of biotechnology, the first-come farmers were selected to grow the best-suited crops that had the highest yields in order to grow enough food to feed the whole population. When the fields and the crops on it grew larger, it became very hard to maintain them. Because of it, a discovery had been made, that certain organisms along with their by-products can fertilize effectively, control pests, and restore nitrogen.
Farmers in all the history of agriculture tailored the genetics of their produce by putting them in new environments and breeding them with other plants. This is one of the early forms of biotechnology. These methods were also added in the early fermentation of beer. In India, China, Italy, and early Mesopotamia, these methods were introduced and they are still valid. The grains which are malted and contain enzymes convert starch from the grains into sugar and then add certain Yeasts to make beer. In this method, carbohydrates present in the grains break down into alcohol, for example, ethanol.
FAQs on Biotechnology Process
1. What is Meant by Gene Cloning?
Gene cloning or DNA cloning is the process of making multiple identical copies of a piece of DNA. The process of gene cloning is done in the following manner:
Isolation of DNA Fragment or Gene
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Selection of the Appropriate Vector
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Incorporation of the Isolated DNA Fragment into the Vector
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The Recombinant Vector is Transformed in the Host Cell
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The Recombinant Host Cell is Isolated
2. Can Exonuclease be Used in the Production of a Recombinant DNA Molecule?
Recombinant DNA molecules are those molecules that are produced with the help of scientific methods in a laboratory environment. No, an exonuclease cannot be used in the production of the recombinant DNA molecule because exonuclease degrades the DNA. An exonuclease acts on the free ends of linear DNA molecules, and as a result, in turn of creating DNA fragments with sticky ends, it will either completely degenerate or shorten the DNA fragment that contains the gene of interest. Consequently, the circular plasmid will not be cut due to the lack of free strands.
3. What do you understand about green biotechnology?
Biotechnology that is applied in the processes of agriculture is known as green biotechnology. The domestication and selection of plants by using micropropagation is its example. The transgenic plants which are designed to grow in a certain environment with or without the presence of chemicals is another example of green biotechnology. There is one hope that says green biotechnology in comparison to traditional industrial agriculture may grow more friendly solutions for the environment. It is seen as the new phase of the green revolution that will help in diminishing world hunger by using technologies that will make the production more fertile.
4. What do you mean by white biotechnology?
Another name for white biotechnology is industrial biotechnology. It is applicable to the process of industries. The design of making a useful solution by an organism is its example. Enzymes are used as an industrial catalyst to grow chemicals that are valuable or used to destroy chemicals that are hazardous in nature. The resources used in white biotechnology are less than the traditional method of producing goods that are of industrial use. If you want to understand it more, look at the material provided by Vedantu online.
5. What is the use of biotechnology in the field of medicine?
Biotechnology in modern times has many uses in the field of discovering pharmaceutical drugs and it’s production, genetic testing, and pharmacogenomics, which is also known as genetic screening.
Pharmacogenomics has a purpose that says to create rational means in order to optimize drug therapy, just to ensure maximum efficiency with minimum adverse effects in the patients. Biotechnology has made its contribution in the manufacturing and discovery of small molecules pharmaceutical drugs which are traditional along with the drugs which are biotechnology - biopharmaceutics’s products.
