Advanced Biotechnology

Stem cell therapy also known as regenerative medicine, which promotes the repair response of diseased, dysfunctional or injured tissue using stem cells or their derivatives. Regenerative medicine is the bough of medicine that develops methods to regrow, repair or replace damaged or diseased cells, organs or tissues and also includes the generation and use of therapeutic stem cells, tissue engineering and the producing of artificial organs. Stem cell research plays a major role in regenerative medicine, which includes the development and use of stem cell treatments.

Modern Analytical Biotechnology is mainly focused on the use of a set of enabling platform technologies that provide contemporary, state-of-the-art tools for genomics, proteomics, metabolomics, drug discovery, screening and analysis of natural product molecules. Analytical Chemistry methods refer to techniques used for the detection, identification, characterization and quantification of chemical compounds and are commonly used in biology for research, development and quality control of pharmaceutical products.

Methods-

Agricultural Biotechnology is a group of scientific techniques used to improve plants, animals and microorganisms. Based on an understanding of DNA, scientists have developed solutions to improve agricultural productivity. Starting from the ability to identify genes that may confer advantages on certain crops and the ability to work with such characteristics very precisely, biotechnology enhances breeder’s ability to make improvements in crops and livestock. It enables improvements that are not possible with traditional crossing of related species alone.

Uses-

Animal biotechnology is a branch of biotechnology in which molecular biology techniques are used to genetically engineer animals in order to improve their suitability for agriculture, industrial, or pharmaceutical applications. Animal biotechnology has been used to create genetically modified animals that synthesize therapeutic proteins, have improved growth rates or are resistant to disease. It includes all animals: livestock, poultry, fish, insects, companion animals and laboratory animals.

Applications evolved through research have led to the emergence of three scientific agricultural animal biotechnology sectors-

Industrial Biotechnology can be explained as the exploitation of enzymes, microorganisms, and plants to produce energy, industrial chemicals and consumer goods. It is one of the most promising new approaches to pollution prevention, resource conservation and cost reduction. It developed to its full potential, industrial biotechnology may have a larger impact on the world than health care and agricultural biotechnology. These include pharmaceuticals, enzymes, biofuels and solvents, nutrients including vitamins and supplements, and novel polymers. As new technologies are employed, they increase the diversity of products that can be produced through industrial biotechnology.

Tissue Engineering derived from the field of biomaterials development and refers to the practice of combining scaffolds, cells and biologically active molecules into functional tissues. The main motive of tissue engineering is to gather functional constructs that restore, maintain or improve damaged tissues or whole organs. Supplemental bladders, small arteries, skin grafts, cartilage and even a full trachea have been implanted in patients but the procedures are still experimental and very expensive. While complex organ tissues like heart, lung, and liver tissue have been successfully recreated in the lab, they are a long way from being fully reproducible and ready to implant into a patient.

Microbial Biotechnology enabled by genome studies and will lead to breakthroughs like improved vaccines and better disease diagnostic tools, improved microbial agents for biological control of plant and animal pests, modifications of plant and animal pathogens for reduced virulence, development of new industrial catalysts and fermentation organisms and development of new microbial agents for bio-remediation of soil and water contaminated by agricultural runoff. Microbial genomics and microbial biotechnology research is critical for advances in food safety, food security, human nutrition and functional foods, plant and animal protection, and furthering fundamental research in the agricultural sciences.

Marine Biotechnology exploits the diversity found in marine environments in terms of the form, structure, physiology and chemistry of marine organisms, many of which have no equivalent on land, in ways which enable new materials to be realised. Marine biotechnology is a knowledge generation and conversion process: it unlocks access to biological compounds and provides novel uses for them. By exploring and harnessing marine materials, entirely new uses in areas far from the marine are likely to be found.

Marine biotechnology techniques-

Molecular Biology and Genetics seek to know how the molecules that make up cells determine the behavior of living things. Biologists use molecular and genetic tools to know the function of those molecules in the complex milieu of the living cell. They study the genetic, chemical and physical attributes of cells, tissues and organisms and identify practical uses for this knowledge. Genetics and molecular biology has given rise to the clusters of techniques that we called such names as genetic engineering. The techniques have rapidly become integral parts of modern biomedical and bio agricultural science, and they promise to transform our world.

Medical biotechnology is a branch of medicine that uses living cells and cell materials to research and then produce pharmaceutical and diagnosing products. These products help treat and prevent diseases. The main aim of medical biotechnology is the Prevention, Diagnosis and Treatment of diseases. Medical Biotechnology principles are applied in pharmacology, gene therapy, stem cells and tissue engineering. It is a rapidly evolving field integrating knowledge obtained in molecular, cell biological, genetic and immunological scientific areas. The medical biotechnology field has helped bring to market microbial pesticides, insect-resistant crops, and environmental clean-up techniques. This discovery was the result of research studies related to deoxyribonucleic acid. Many scientists in the medical biotechnology field study genetic engineering which involves isolating, identifying and sequencing the human genes to determine their functions.

Advancements-

Environmental Biotechnology is the branch of biotechnology that addresses environmental problems like the removal of pollution, renewable energy generation or biomass production, by use of biological processes. Environmental Biotechnology used to detect, prevent and remediate the emission of pollutants into the environment in a number of ways. Environmental biotechnology includes the use of microorganisms and their processes for the clean-up of environmental contamination, specific examples of which include ground-water treatment, treatment of leachates, and clean-up of contaminated soils, sludges and sediments.

Biochemical Engineering is a highly interdisciplinary field combining biotechnology and chemical engineering. It includes the study of how basic raw materials are changed to the finished products by means of rigorous processes. It mainly deals with the design, construction, and advancement of unit processes that involve biological organisms or organic molecules and has different applications in areas of interest like biofuels, food, pharmaceuticals, biotechnology and water treatment processes. The cells could be from animals, bacteria or single-celled animals like algae each type needs to be treated in a various way to get them to do what is needed.