Biotechnology has many uses and has also found its place in many industries such as science, medicine and agriculture. The improvements that have been made in various fields such as pharmacology and the invention of genetically engineered drugs which are produced and used by the public to treat a number of conditions and diseases and scientists and doctors are positive about where biotechnology can go in the future.
One area of biotechnology uses the concepts of genetically modified organisms. These organisms have had the genetic material altered by the use of genetic engineering techniques and methods. The methods used in genetic
engineering are known as recombinant DNA. This technology allows DNA molecules to be combined from different sources into a new set of genes. The DNA created is then transferred into another organism and creates a new set of characteristics and properties.
The transformation of agriculture that became known as the Green Revolution used biotechnology applications to create genetically engineered seeds and products for farming that changed the way that farmers produced crops and changed the quality of those crops. Improvements were made to fertilizers and chemicals that were used on crops to produce high yields much quicker than without them. The reason the Green Revolution began was to help feed the populations of the world that had suddenly began to grow. People were concerned that there would not be enough food and supplies to go around for everyone, and that created the use of biotechnology applications to produce genetically engineered products that could increase production of food crops.
Genetic engineering has played a part in most advances made in biotechnology applications including that of the agricultural and in the medical community. Since DNA began to be studied and researched, it has opened the door to new discoveries through biotechnology. Genetic engineering created hopes for finding better therapeutic proteins, biological organisms and drugs. Through scientific breakthroughs, advancements in technology and the increased use of genetic engineering, biotechnology applications have become widely used.
How is biotechnology used and applied in different fields? Biotechnology has roots to industrial microbiology that go back for centuries. The boom of the biotechnological industry started occurring in the 1970’s. The main focus of biotechnology has been on producing and improving pharmacological drugs including the human growth hormone. Genetic engineering aimed to provide cures for cancer, AIDS and other diseases and in 1988 there were only five genetically produced proteins that were approved for use in drugs:
There have also been a lot of discoveries being made in the medical fields with the creation of genetic engineered drugs and work done on DNA that created improvements in how pharmaceuticals were created and approved to be available to the public.