Animal Biotechnology Notes (Zoology)

Quadrant II – Transcript and Related Materials Programme : Bachelor of Science (Third Year) Subject : Zoology Paper Code : ZOD 104 Paper Title : Animal Biotechnology Unit : I- Introduction Module Name : Biotechnology:...

Quadrant II – Transcript and Related Materials Programme : Bachelor of Science (Third Year) Subject : Zoology Paper Code : ZOD 104 Paper Title : Animal Biotechnology Unit : I- Introduction Module Name : Biotechnology: Disciplines Name of the Presenter : Dr. Alisha Fernandes Notes DISCIPLINES OF BIOTECHNOLOGY Based on applications, there are five main branches of biotechnology, viz.; (1) Animal Biotechnology: It deals with: ❖ Identifying and characterizing animal breeds ❖ Studying animal genomics and its applications ❖ Developing molecular diagnostic techniques ❖ Developing genetically engineered vaccines ❖ Developing embryo - transfer techniques, transgenic animals and plants ❖ DNA forensics ❖ Conserving wildlife ❖ Stem cell and bio - processing technologies (2) Plant Biotechnology: Currently the potential of plant tissue culture is widely applied for the rapid and economic clonal multiplication of fruit and forest trees, for the production of virus free genetic products and planting material, as well as in the creation of novel genetic variations through soma clonal variation. With the rDNA technology, it has now become possible to produce transgenic plants with desirable genes such as herbicide resistance, disease resistance, increased shelf life, etc. Techniques such as molecular breeding have been employed to accelerate the process of crop improvement. For instance, molecular markers, such as restriction fragment length polymorphism (RFLP), and simple sequence repeats (SSRs) provide potential tools for the indirect selection of both qualitative and quantitative traits, and also for studying genotypic diversity. Plant biotechnology consists of the application of two basic techniques, viz., (i) Tissue culture, (ii) Recombinant DNA technology (3) Medical Biotechnology: One of the major areas in biotechnology is the medical sector. This is the field where major research is taking place and several breakthroughs have been made. It deals with production of human insulin and interferon; vaccines for chicken pox, rabies, polio etc. , and growth hormones. Genetic engineering has helped in the large scale production of hormones, blood serum proteins; in the development of antibiotics, and other medically useful products. (4) Industrial Biotechnology: Industrial biotechnology was established for the large-scale production of alcohol and antibiotics like penicillin, streptomycin, mitomycin, etc., through the use of microorganisms especially fungi and bacteria. Currently, various pharmaceutical drugs and chemicals such as lactic acid, glycerine, acetic acid, citric acid, acetone, etc, are being produced by genetic engineering for better quality and quantity. Biotechnology has provided us with a very efficient and economical technique for the production of a variety of biochemicals, e.g. immobilized enzymes. (5) Environmental Biotechnology: Environmental problems such as pollution control, depletion of natural resources for non-renewable energy, conservation of biodiversity, etc, are being dealt with using biotechnology. For example, bacteria are being utilized for the detoxification of industrial effluents, to combat oil spills, for treatment of sewage and for biogas production. Biopesticides and Biologicals agents such as viruses, bacteria, fungi etc. offer an environmentally safer alternative to chemical pesticides for control of insect pests and diseases. Colour of Biotechnology Red biotechnology -Health, Medical, Diagnostics Yellow biotechnology -Food Biotechnology, Nutrition Science Blue biotechnology -Aquaculture, Coastal and Marine Biotech Green biotechnology -Agricultural, Environmental Biotechnology – Biofuels, Biofertilizers, Bioremediation, Geomicrobiology Violet biotechnology - legal aspects related to biotechnology, safety practices, patents, bioethical issues, philosophical issues and safety studies of law Dark biotechnology - bioterrorism or biological weapons and biowarfare which uses microorganisms, and toxins to cause diseases and death in humans, livestock and crops Brown biotechnology – management of arid lands, dessert and dry regions gold biotechnology - bioinformatics, nanotechnology, computer science and chip technology White biotechnology – industrial applications such as bio- catalysis, use of living cells such as yeast, bacteria, plants and enzymes to synthesize easily degradable products that create less waste Gray biotechnology - problems of environmental protection, control of pollution and maintenance of biodiversity