The application of Biotechnology in our day to day lives is advancing by leaps and bounds; from pharmaceutical development to food production and the treatment of polluting waste.
Biotechnology is the branch of Science and Technology that uses living organisms and their derivatives to generate products and processes.
Biotechnology uses living cells to develop or manipulate products for specific purposes, such as genetically modified foods. Biotechnology is thus linked to genetic engineering.
Biotechnology is divided into 5 branches: human, environmental, industrial, animal and plant.
Applications of Biotechnology
Biotechnology play a crucial role in the society of the future in preventing and containing potential pathogens. Some of the most relevant applications of biotechnology are in:
Types of Biotechnology
The different biotechnology applications are grouped into seven colours or areas of research and development; the most relevant are given below:
| Red Biotechnology | This is the health branch and responsible for the development of vaccines and other medicines |
| Green Biotechnology | Used by farmers worldwide to fight pests and nourish crops and strengthen them against microorganisms and extreme weather events, such as droughts and frosts. |
| White Biotechnology | The industrial branch works to improve manufacturing processes, the development of biofuels and other technologies to make industry more efficient and sustainable. |
| Yellow Biotechnology | This branch is focused on food production |
| Blue Technology | This exploits marine resources to obtain aquaculture, cosmetics and health care products. |
| Grey Biotechnology | Its purpose is the conservation and restoration of contaminated natural ecosystems |
| Gold Biotechnology | Also known as bioinformatics it is responsible for obtaining, storing, analysing and separating biological information |
Biotechnology and the pandemic
Biotechnological innovations are already part of our daily lives and we find them in pharmacies and supermarkets, among many other places. Recently, biotechnology has become an integral part in the fight against the COVID-19 global pandemic, since it helps to decipher the virus’ genome and understand how our body’s defence mechanism works against infectious agents.
For those reasons, the opportunities in this sector has increased tremendously.
Biotechnology Vs. Pharmaceutical Companies
Biotechnology and pharmaceutical companies both produce medicines. However, the medicines made by biotechnology companies are derived from living organisms while those made by pharmaceutical companies generally have a chemical basis.
Careers
Biotechnology is a wide-reaching field. While pharmaceuticals and drug development are common paths, bio technologists also work for government agencies, clinical labs, manufacturing, software engineering, R&D, and business management.
Some of the best job roles in this sector are:
- Biomedical Engineer
- Biochemist
- Medical Scientist
- Clinical Technician
- Microbiologist
- Process Development Scientist
- Biomanufacturing Specialist
- Product Strategist
- Biopharma Sales Representative
- Medical Scientist
- Biotechnological Technician
- Epidemiologist
- Microbiologist
- Medical and Clinical Lab Technologist
- Biomanufacturing Specialist
- Bioproduction Specialist
- R&D Scientist
For details, check out our Diploma, Undergraduate and Post Graduate courses in Biotechnology sector!
Apna Saathi 