Bio technology

Biotechnology is a new discipline of science in which latest technology has been applied to biological organisms for the welfare of society. Biotechnology is the application of scientific and engineering principles to the processing of materials using biological agents to provides goods and services. It is defined as “any technique that uses living organisms to make or modify products to improve plants and animals or to develop micro-organisms for specific uses”.
Biotechnology is as old as our civilization. The old biotechnology is like alcohol fermentation using yeast to make wine and beer.
The modern biotechnology stands on the understing of molecular basic of biological cell function and alter the cell function to make it produce products required by society.
The major new techniques available with modern biotechnology are plant tissue culture, recombinant DNA technology and hybridoma technology.
It is a completely genetic engineering. It involves the knowledge of biology, microbiology, biochemistry, immunology, molecular biology, genetic engineering etc.
Biotechnology holds potentials for developing products and processess in various sectors of agriculture, animals husbandry, health, energy and environment protection.

Historical perspectives
Biotechnology processes are actually in use since prehistoric times. The primitive people were all acquired with alcoholic fermentation and vinegar fermentation from sugary substances. The Sumerians were experts in brewing different types of beer.
Ethanol was first obtained 1150 by distillation of alcoholic beverages. Since than it is being manufactured throughout the world. In 14th century, first vinegar manufacturing industry was established in France. Artificial cultivation of mushroom was initiated in 1650 in France. 1680 Leeuwenhoek first observed yeast cells. Erxleben (1818) discovered the fermentative properties of yeast. In 18 79 Louis Pasteur highlighted the latic acid fermentation by microbs. Hansen (1897) reported the enzymes extracted from yeast could convert sugar into alcohol.
Towards the end of the 19th century the large-scale sewage purification system employing microbs was established in Germany and France. During the same period, three improtant industrial chemicals ( acetone, butanol and glycerine) were obtained from bacteria. Penicilline was discovered by Alexender Flemming in 1928. The large-scale manufacture of penicilline started in 1944. From 1950 several antiboties were dicovered and added to the list of “ wonder drugs”.
In 1953 Watson and Crick reveated the structure of DNA which actually laid the foundation of genetic engineering. First successful genetic engineering experiment was done in 1973. In 1982 genetically engineering insulin was approved for use. In the middle and late eighties several new antiboties and vaccines were developed. Interferous are being widely employed for the treatment of some diseases and even certain viral induced cancers