Biotechnology Overview and Tools

Biotechnology Overview

• Biotechnology is using living organisms or substances from living organisms to make products or processes. It can be used in agriculture, medicine, and the environment.

Tools in Biotechnology

• Restriction endonucleases: Enzymes that cut DNA at specific nucleotide sequences. A new sequence insertion doesn't usually happen with this technique (unlike CRISPR).
• Methylases: Enzymes that protect DNA from cleavage or damage.
• DNA ligases: Enzymes that join DNA fragments together.
• Gel electrophoresis: Separates DNA molecules by size; used for DNA analysis, DNA fingerprinting, and paternity testing.

Specific Techniques

• Plasmids: Circular DNA in bacteria; scientists use them to study antibiotic resistance and gene expression.
• Polymerase Chain Reaction (PCR): Amplifies DNA sequences to create multiple copies, allowing for many tests and research scenarios.
• DNA sequencing: Used in projects like the Human Genome Project and the Barcode of Life; provides the order of nucleotides in a DNA segment.

Types of Biotechnology

• Red Biotechnology: Medical applications, including producing antibiotics, vaccines, and pharmaceuticals; also genetic screening, gene therapy, and cloning.
• Green Biotechnology: Agricultural processes; includes transgenic plants (modifying plants with genes from other organisms) that have increased yields, nutritional content, and pest/environmental resistance.
• White Biotechnology: Industrial processes; includes bioremediation (cleaning contaminated soil or water with microorganisms) and using enzymes as catalysts to make valuable chemicals or eliminate dangerous ones.
• Blue Biotechnology: Marine and aquatic processes; aims to increase seafood supply and safety and control harmful waterborne organisms, as well as developing new drugs.

Applications

• Restriction Fragment Length Polymorphism (RFLP): Used to compare DNA fragment differences, used to identify disease markers in individuals (diseases like cystic fibrosis, CF). RFLP requires more blood compared to PCR.
• Examples of Biotechnology: Includes artificial selection, artificial insemination, brewing and fermentation, medicine and pharmaceuticals, gene splicing, stem cells and tissue regeneration, cloning, DNA testing and genomic sequencing, protein purification, and microbial synthetic biology.

Explore the fascinating world of biotechnology, its applications in agriculture, medicine, and the environment. This quiz covers essential tools and techniques such as restriction endonucleases, PCR, and DNA sequencing that drive research and innovation in the field.