HISTORY OF BIOTECHNOLOGY,inventions and discoveries.pptx
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The document provides an overview of the history of biotechnology, highlighting its evolution from prehistoric agricultural practices to modern applications focused on gene engineering and fermentation. It discusses early biotechnological methods such as selective breeding and fermentation, as well as the contributions of figures like Louis Pasteur to the understanding of microorganisms. Additionally, it emphasizes the diverse applications of biotechnology in pharmaceuticals, agriculture, and environmental sciences aimed at benefiting humanity.
HISTORY OF BIOTECHNOLOGY,inventions and discoveries.pptx
- 2. INTRODUCTION Broadly, this can be defined as the engineering of the organisms for the purpose of human usage. It can also be defined as the skill set required for the utilization of the living systems or the influencing of natural processes so as to produce specific products, systems or environments to help human development. Currently biotechnology places more emphasis and keen focuss on the establishment of hybrid genes followed by their transfer into the organisms in which some, or all, of the gene is not usually present.
- 3. In the prehistoric times, a primitive form of biotechnology was practised by the agriculturalists who established better-quality species of plants and animals by methods of cross-pollination or cross-breeding technique(Huttner,1995). Previous forms of biotechnology include the training and the selective breeding of animals, the cultivation of crops and the utilization of the micro-organisms to produce products such as cheese, yogurt, bread, beer and wine. Early agriculture concentrated on generating food(Hough,1988).
- 4. The most primitive type of biotechnology is the cultivation of the plants and the training (in particular the domestication) of animals. The domestication of the animals stretches back over 10 000 years, when our ancestors also started maintaining plants as a much reliable source of food. The earliest examples of such domesticated plant species are rice, barley and wheat. Wild animals were also controlled to synthesize milk or meat. The ancient production of cheese, yogurt and bread from micro-organisms is also reported and assessed. Various alcoholic drinks such as beer and alsowine were developed during this period, when the process of the fermentation was first discovered.
- 5. Later, it was discovered that the micro-organisms, e.g. bacteria, yeast or molds, hydrolyze sugars when they lack oxygen and are ultimately responsible for fermentation process. This process results in the formation of the products (food and drink). Consequently, fermentation was perhaps first explored by chance, since in the earlier times nobody knew how it worked. During the prehistoric era some civilizations considered the fermentation to be a gift from their gods. Scientific evidence for fermentation was first delineated by Louis Pasteur in the late 1800s. He demonstrated a theory known as the germ theory, presenting the survival of micro-organisms and their further effects on the process of the fermentation.
- 6. Pasteur's efforts contributed towards several branches of science. In the earlier times several traditional medicines were used as biotechnology products, such as honey, which could be availed to treat several respiratory ailments and as an ointment for the wounds. Since honey contains several antimicrobial compounds it is considered to be a natural antibiotic and is more effectively availed in wound healing. Similarly, in China as far back as 600 BC, soybean curds were availed to treat boils. Ukrainian farmers once used utilized moldy cheese to treat infected wounds. Biotechnology: A Basic Requirement-As all know, the technological application of biological material is considered as biotechnology. If, we want to understand how the stream works, then it is essential for us to know what is the starting point or the material for biotechnology. In general, biotechnology uses either living material or the biological products to create new products for their use in various pharmaceutical, medical, agricultural,and also environmental applications, with the ultimate goal to benefit the humanity, for example, production of recombinant proteins, the resistant crops, vegetables, higher milk producing animals, and the list is quiet endless
- 7. .Journal of Research in Forensic Medicine and Biotechnology, History of Biotechnology – Overview, Dr. S.Sreeremya, . 2024.Vol6(2):48-54.