Application of Biotechnology in

Food, Pharmaceuticals and

Agriculture Industries.
 GM- Planting Mats. & Hybrids r-DNA Products, Vaccines & Diagnostics
Micro-propagation Monoclonal Antibodies
Bio-fertilizers & Bio-pesticides Stem Cells
Animal Improvement Tissue Specific delivery methods

Agriculture Health Care

BIOTECH APPLICATIONS

Environment Industry

Enzymes
Soil & Water remediation Fermentation based Products & Food
Bio-safety & GMOs
Biotech Instruments & Equipment
Bio-energy & Bio-fuel
Bioinformatics, Bio-mining
Application of Biotechnology in Food Industry
• Food biotechnology is the application of technology
to modify genes of animals, plants, and
microorganisms to create new species which have
desired production, marketing, or nutrition related
properties.

• Biotechnology includes a wide range of di verse

technologies and they may be applied in each of
the different food and agriculture sectors.
• Biotechnology in food processing sector plays an important
role in food fermentations, food additives and processing
aids, food safety through advances in microbial genetics,
detection of pathogens, mycotoxin detection and
identification of foods and food ingredients.

• Biotechnology in the food processing sector targets the

selection and improvement of microorganisms with the
objectives of improving process control , yields and
efficiency as well as the quality, safety and consistency of
bioprocessed products.
Examples:
• Emulsifiers:
• Acacia gum is predominantly used as an emulsifier in the food
industry due to its emulsifying and stabilization properties.
Using new molecular tools, emulsifiers are now synthesized
from covalently coupled carbohydrates like starch, pectin,
sugar and proteins from wheat, milk and soya bean.

• Peanut Allergy Testing:

• Many people have been found to display allergic reactions
after eating peanuts. To combat this problem, it is essential to
identify the cause of this allergy. For this purpose, a highly
sensitive immunological assay has been developed by a
Netherland based company to detect peanut proteins in foods.
This is the first peanut assay with commercial applications.
• Effective Monitoring:
• Scientists are developing versatile gastrointestinal models for
detailed monitoring of digestibility, bioconversion and
biodegradability of foods and drugs and contaminants from the
point of safety and functionality. These models are now used
for studying the digestive effect of nutraceutical foods

• Calcium Intake:
• One of the most important and innovative applications of
biotechnology is to improve the calcium level in our foodstuff
Researchers have shown that oligo-fructose, a naturally
occurring, low-digestible oligosaccharide, increases calcium
absorption by as much as twenty two per cent. Such studies
can open the floodgates for new areas of health application and
new classes of ingredients. These findings can be used to
create new products in dairy, bakery, confectionery and drinks.
• Foods from Microbes:
• While brewing and baking have existed for ages, we are
now using genetically pure strains in the process. Studies
show that nearly 1.5 million tons of bakers’ yeast
{Saccharomyces cervisiae) is produced throughout the
world every year. Modern plants have also reduced the
time required in the fermentation process from months to
days. Similarly, the fungus Aspergillus oryzae is being
used to produce a wide range of important enzymes.
Application of Biotechnology in
Pharmaceutical Industry
• Biotechnology is the science which combines biology with
technology that is being used rampantly in pharmaceutical sector.
This science has proved to be a boon especially in manufacturing
of vaccinations and genetic testing.

• Manufacturing of vaccines: Every pharmaceutical company aims

at producing products that can help tackle severe health problems
and benefit the society in a major way. With the increase in
population, changing lifestyles and economies the entire world is
facing health problems and diseases that are tough to cure.
• Biotechnology has successfully found cure for numerous
diseases including cardiovascular disorders, arthritis,
Hepatitis B, bone fractures etc. By investing heavily in
biotechnological research and testing many pharma
manufacturers have been able to find solutions to diseases
that at a point of time were considered to be incurable.
• This science thus has helped in busting myths and scientists
even now are studying this science and the benefits it can
bring to us.
• Biotechnology evolved in early 90s worldwide and
within a span of almost 2 decades this science has
changed the way a pharmaceutical company
functions.
• Biotech makes use of molecule products and
concepts which is also the prerequisite of pharma
manufacturing companies.
• The production costs of biotech based products are
cheaper and this is a major reason why the pharma
industry embraced this technology and has made it
an indispensable part of its own self.
 Examples:
• Insulin:
• It is an important hormone regulating glucose levels.
• Anti-haemophilic Factor:
• It is an important material purified from human blood, and used
in the treatment of haemophilia. Action has proved difficult
because of infection of haemophiliacs with AIDS virus.
• Gene therapy:
• Is the use of DNA as a pharmaceutical agent to treat disease.  It
derives its name from the idea that DNA can be used to
supplement or alter genes within an individual's cells as a
therapy to treat disease  The most common form of gene
therapy involves using DNA that encodes a functional,
therapeutic gene to replace a mutated gene.
• Human Serum Albumin:
• It is one of the most common blood proteins used in the
treatment of shock injuries such as burns.
• Engineered Enzymes:
• These enzymes are used to treat a range of conditions from
cardiac diseases to renal failure, to certain types of inherited
enzyme deficiencies.
• Rapid advances are continuously being made in the field,
and new horizons include the development of enzymes like
biosensors or bio electrodes to monitor many physiological
processes.
Application of Biotechnology in
Agri Industry
Many forms of human-derived agriculture clearly fit the broad
definition of "'utilizing a biotechnological system to make
products". Indeed, the cultivation of plants may be viewed as the
earliest biotechnological enterprise.
• Agriculture has been theorized to have become the dominant
way of producing food since the Neolithic Revolution.
• Applications of biotechnology to plants or animals to improve
their food processing properties (e.g. development of the Flavr
Savr tomato variety, genetically modified to reduce its ripening
rate) or to produce proteins from genetically modified (GM)
microorganisms to improve plant or animal production (e.g.
production of bovine somato tropin (BST), a hormone increasing
milk production in dairy cows, by GM bacteria) are not
considered here.
• Gene technology can be used in agriculture and food
production to…..
• increase crop or animal resistance to pests while reducing
the use of chemicals;
• increase crop or animal tolerance to chemicals that are used
to kill harmful pests;
• create disease resistance in crops and animals;
• improve the food yield per plant or animal;
• make plants and animals more suited to environmental
conditions e.g. drier regions or salty water;
• improve the nutritional quality of the food produced by the
plant or animal.
• Genetically modified crops ("GM crops", or "biotech crops")
are plants used in agriculture, the DNA of which has been
modified with genetic engineering techniques. In most cases
the aim is to introduce a new trait to the plant which does not
occur naturally in the species.
• FLOWERS There is some simply aesthetic application and an
example of this is the use of gene recognition and transfer
techniques to improve the color, smell, size and other features
of flowers. Similarly, biotech has been used to make
improvement to other common ornamental plants, in particular,
shrubs and trees. Some of these changes are similar to those
made to crops, such as enhancing cold confrontation of a breed
of tropical plant, so it can be grown in northern gardens.

• BIOFUELS : The agricultural industry plays a big role in the

biofuels industry, as long as the feedstock's for fermentation
and cleansing of bio-oil, bio-diesel and bio-ethanol. Genetic
engineering and enzyme optimization technique are being used
to develop improved quality feedstocks for more efficient
change and higher BTU outputs of the resulting fuel products.