There are numerous applications of
biotechnology: it has been a part of the agricultural industry for quite some
time. In addition to the agricultural uses, biotechnology has also been making
waves in the pharmaceutical industry. When you hear the term red biotechnology
applications, you may not know what it is referring to, but in the medical
industry it refers to Biopharmaceutical, which is defined as medical drugs that
are produced by applying methods of biotechnology.
Some of the biopharmaceuticals that are
produced through the use of biotechnology include antibodies, nucleic acids,
proteins, DNA and RNA. These are all used for in-vivo therapeutic or diagnostic
purposes. They are different than other pharmaceuticals because they
are developed using methods of biotechnology rather than direct extraction.
The first biopharmaceutical that was
approved for use is actually insulin. Insulin was created using recombinant
technology with DNA. Since the inception of insulin being released and used in
the medical community, there have been continuous strides in the field of
biopharmaceuticals. Most of these are derived from forms of living organisms.
Once a biopharmaceutical is created and
approved for use, it typically goes through the process of being patented to
give it exclusive rights for manufacturing and production. Because of the high
cost usually associated with using biotechnology methods in creating
biopharmaceuticals, it is important to the creator of the new drug to be able
to maintain rights to it to help absorb a portion of the cost it took in the
stages of development.
There is very strict control over the
distribution and commercial use of biopharmaceuticals in the United States and the
FDA strictly enforces codes and rules when it comes to how and when they are to
be distributed. The process of releasing
a biopharmaceutical into the public spectrum can take up to a few years. This
is because companies have to do rigorous testing and trials on subjects
introducing the pharmaceuticals and make sure that they are safe and effective
to be released to the public. It can take millions of dollars to get a
biopharmaceutical in the doctor’s office or on the shelves after the drug was
first discovered. Because of this, it often can take a long time to financially
see a return after the drug is released into the market.
Biotechnology applications have made and
continue to make a big improvement in the process and distribution of
pharmaceuticals into the medical community.