Principles of Biotechnology

Book Name: Principles of Biotechnology
Author: Christina A. Crawford
Publisher: Salem Press
ISBN-10, 13: 9781682176788,1682176789
Year: 2018
Pages: 400 pages
Language: English
File size: 36 MB
File format: PDF,EPUB

Principles of Biotechnology Pdf Book Description:

Biotechnology is defined as the use of living organisms, or substances obtained from living organisms, to produce products or processes of value to humankind While it is true that biotechnology has made tremendous advances in the areas of human and veterinary medicine, agriculture, food production, and other fields, these advances have also raised some genuine concerns about how biotechnology should be monitored Ongoing debates continue the effort to balance the potential of biotechnology, in particular genetic engineering, and its ability to produce organisms that may benefit humans, against growing concerns about the potential for these advances and inventions to disrupt ecosystems, negatively affect human health, or be used in ethically inappropriate ways Many countries have different interpretations of the field Australia, for example, defines biotechnology as any technological application that uses biological systems, including living organisms or derivatives thereof, to make or modify products or processes for specific use Canada defines biotechnology as the application of science and engineering to the direct or indirect use of living organisms.

Biotechnology has played an important role in helping to effectively remediate environmental disasters In March, 1989, the Exxon Valdez oil tanker spilled millions of gallons of crude oil in Prince William Sound, Alaska On many beaches, the Environmental Protection Agency authorized the use of simple bioremediation techniques, such as stimulating the growth of indigenous oil-degrading bacteria by adding common inorganic fertilizers Beaches cleaned by this method did as well as beaches cleaned by mechanical methods In another instance of successful bioremediation, selenium-contaminated soil in the Kesterson National Wildlife Refuge in California was partially decontaminated in the 1980s through the method of supplying indigenous fungi with organic substrates such as casein and waste orange peels This promoted as much as 60 percent selenium volatilization in less than two months
The cloning of Dolly the sheep in Scotland in 1996 opened a whole new avenue in the use of biotechnology for livestock production The use of cloning technology in conjunction with surrogate mothers provides the means to produce a whole herd of genetically superior animals in a short period of time As well as offering a new way to raise livestock, it also brought serious questions about the ethics of cloning and genetic engineering to the forefront of a public debate that continues to this day.