Biotechnology – what, why, where?

Charlotte Mulvihill, Grant PIBiotechnology/Bioinformatics Discovery! Project

Oklahoma City Community College405-682-1611 x7225

cmulvihill@occc.edu www.occc.edu/bbdiscovery

Biology – a broad field of study All biologists study living things but you could be

specialized in the study of:-whole organisms: animals, plants, humans, microbes

-relationships between organisms & the environment: ecology, evolution

-cells and biological molecules

Where does biotechnology fit?• Biotechnology: applying what we know about life

forms or processes to make a product or solve a problem (often for profit).

• “Old” biotech- we have been using microbes to make products like wine, beer, yogurt, cheese, for a long time.

• “New” biotech: uses DNA and proteins in novel ways, building on recent discoveries at the molecular level. Sometimes called “genetic engineering.”

Stop and Think• Why do you think

biotechnology raises concern from some people?

Human Genome Project (the moon shot of biology)

• International effort (public and private) to sequence all 3 billion base-pairs in the human genome. The resultant knowledge and technology is being used now to sequence entire genomes of many other organisms.

• The large amount of data generated led to using computers to organize and use the data, introducing a new field called bioinformatics.

Stop and Think• Can you think of why

for-profit companies might be interested in the sequences of genomes?

Biotech in Food and Agriculture • transgenic animals & plants, • biofuels, • Bt corn, • Golden rice• rBST to increase milk

production,• Aquaculture• Round-up ready soybeans• Virus-resistant papaya• Improved animal vaccines.

Biotech in Industry“nature-based factories”

• Bioremediation for pollution control,

• Environmental monitoring with biosensors

• enzymes in your detergent for cleaner clothes,

• Enzymes for softening and fading blue jeans.

• Enzymes in contact lens cleaning solution

• Biodegradable polymers

Biotech in Human Health• better vaccines, • enzyme-replacement treatments

for genetic diseases, • Better and customized

medicines, • Faster, more accurate

diagnostics• Gene therapy• Forensics• Regenerative medicine

Stop and Think• Why do you think the

National Institutes of Health (NIH) set aside some of its human genome project budget for ethical, legal, social issues (ELSI)?

(bioethics)

Oklahoma Biotechnology- growing and paying well! Working on:

• Personalized medicine: breast cancer risk testing (InterGenetics); disease diagnosis and treatment responses (RiGEN)

• Biomanufacturing (Cytovance)• Better prosthetics for amputees (Martin Bionics)• Biofuels and bioenergy research (Noble Foundation)• Biosecurity (Center for Biosecurity Research)• DNA testing and forensics (DNA Solutions)• New treatments for macular degeneration (Charlesson LLC),

hospital sepsis (Biolytx), aging skin (Therametics)• Merging biotech with nanotechnology (NanoBioMagnetics)

Jobs in Biotech

Workforce availability is

one key factor in the

flourishing biotechnology

industry to Oklahoma.

General Information

Oklahoma City Community College supports the OK biotechnology vision by training workers for the industry.

www.occc.edu/biotech

Education and Training