Friday, 26 April 2019

Here Is Information On Biotechnologies

By Henry Fisher


A lot of fields have been in existence since the beginning of humanity and Biotechnology is one of them. Distant ancestors invented some of the foods such as bread, which people eat today. The ancestors were making effort to improve their lives through the invention. Yeast is used to ferment dough which is used to make bread. Biotechnology refers to the process where end products are achieved from the employment of living organisms or processes. This is worth knowing about Biotechnologies.

There have been great advancements in the field of biotechnology from when it began to what it is today. The field was discovered by great scientists like Edward Jenner and Alexander Fleming. These scientists have greatly contributed to the existence of biotechnology. Vaccines were invented by Jenner and antibiotics were invented by Fleming. These products have been of great value to humanity.

The term biotechnology was first coined in 1919 by agriculturalist Karl Ereky. In the definition of the term, Ereky described biotechnology as all lines of work that make use of living organisms to produce products from raw materials. Today, this field is not in its early stages anymore. There are some profound discoveries that scientists have made to symbolize the development of the field.

Scientists today are altering DNA and proteins to shape the abilities of living cells, plants and animals to be more helpful to humans. They attain this by changing DNA inside test tubes inside a laboratory. In the recent past, the manipulation is no longer being done inside test tubes, but inside cells that are living. The most thrilling discoveries in biotechnology in the recent past are taking place at microscopic level.

Biotechnological discoveries made in the past and current times have been more helpful than dangerous. Some of the risks associated with this field have largely been discussed, but have not yet been experienced in real life. However, the recent breakthroughs and discoveries may symbolize that biotechnology is achieving maturity and with that comes a genuine concern of risks. There are several risks associated with biotechnology and some are highlighted below.

Unintended consequences are one of the risks that biotechnology presents. The field is most feared for being able to produce effects that are devastating to humanity especially when it is done at the microscopic level. Scientists and researchers hope that the many problems which are experienced today will be solved through gene editing and deleting.

Gene deletion has been done in humans severally in efforts to look for ways to control HIV, cancer among other lethal health conditions. The process of deleting genes has been found to be more complicated than it was initially thought. Deferent reactions and behavior occur in the body of humans when they undergo gene deletion. These reactions are usually different from what scientists expected. This led to suspension of tests to pave way for more research on gene deletion.

Weaponizing biology is another threat which biotechnology possess to the society. With the natural outbreak of deadly diseases such as Zika virus and Ebola, there are anticipations that similar outbreaks can be deliberately instigated in future. Through biotechnology, the outbreak of such diseases can be made intentionally by terrorists and other evil people with intentions of killing people and other reasons.




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