Biotechnology

thumb|right|upright=1.33|The structure of the DNA double helix (type [[B-DNA). The atoms in the structure are colour-coded by element and the detailed structures of two base pairs are shown in the bottom right.]] thumb|Simplified diagram

Biochemistry, or biological chemistry (distinct from chemical biology), is the study of chemical processes within and relating to living organisms. A sub-discipline of both chemistry and biology, biochemistry may be divided into three fields: structural biology, enzymology, and metabolism. Over the last decades of the 20th century, biochemistry has become successful at explaining living processes through these three disciplines. Almost all areas of the life sciences are being uncovered and developed through biochemical methodology and research. Biochemistry focuses on understanding the chemica

thumb|A biologist conducting research in a biotechnology laboratory

thumb|A hairpin loop from a pre-mRNA. Highlighted are the nucleobases (green) and the ribose-phosphate backbone (blue). This is a single strand of RNA that folds back upon itself.

Vaccination is the administration of a vaccine to help the immune system develop immunity from a disease. Vaccines contain a microorganism or virus in a weakened, live or killed state, or proteins or toxins from the organism. In stimulating the body's adaptive immunity, they help prevent sickness from an infectious disease. When a sufficiently large percentage of a population has been vaccinated, herd immunity results. Herd immunity protects those who may be immunocompromised and cannot get a vaccine because even a weakened version would harm them.

direct manipulation of an organism's genome using biotechnology

undifferentiated biological cells that can differentiate into specialized cells

in vitro method for producing large amounts of specific DNA or RNA fragments from small amounts of short oligonucleotide primers

thumb|On the left is breast milk of the human expressed on day 4 of lactation, and on the right is [[breast milk expressed on day 8. Colostrum gives the milk a yellowish hue.]] thumb|Bovine colostrum (beestings) next to spray-dried colostrum powder

process by which humans use animal and plant breeding to selectively develop particular phenotypic traits

thumb|Schematic diagram of a [[micelle of oil in aqueous suspension, such as might occur in an emulsion of oil in water. In this example, the surfactant molecules' oil-soluble tails project into the oil (blue), while the water-soluble ends remain in contact with the water phase (red).]]

thumb|Artist's illustration of a cyborg

Bionics or biologically inspired engineering is the application of biological methods and systems found in nature to the study and design of engineering systems and modern technology.

research program for sequencing the human genome

genetic modification of a patient's cells to produce a therapeutic effect

animal flesh product that has never been part of a living animal

class of enzymes that cleaves DNA into fragments at or near specific recognition sites within the molecule known as restriction sites

branch of science about life

thumb|262px|Diagram of the CRISPR prokaryotic antiviral defense mechanism CRISPR (; acronym for clustered regularly interspaced short palindromic repeats) is a family of DNA sequences found in the genomes of prokaryotic organisms such as bacteria and archaea. Each sequence within an individual prokaryotic CRISPR is derived from a DNA fragment of a bacteriophage that had previously infected the prokaryote or one of its ancestors. These sequences are used to detect and destroy DNA from similar bacteriophages during subsequent infections. Hence these sequences play a key role in the antiviral (i.

process by which cells are grown under controlled conditions

monospecific antibody that is made by identical immune cells that are all clones of a unique parent cell

Bioremediation broadly refers to any process wherein a biological system (typically bacteria, microalgae, fungi in mycoremediation, and plants in phytoremediation), living or dead, is employed for removing environmental pollutants from air, water, soil, fuel gasses, industrial effluents etc., in natural or artificial settings. The natural ability of organisms to adsorb, accumulate, and degrade common and emerging pollutants has attracted the use of biological resources in treatment of contaminated environment. In comparison to conventional physicochemical treatment methods bioremediation may o

Nanomedicine is the medical application of nanotechnology, translating historic nanoscience insights and inventions into practical application. Nanomedicine ranges from the medical applications of nanomaterials and biological devices, to nanoelectronic biosensors, and even possible future applications of molecular nanotechnology such as biological machines. Current problems for nanomedicine involve understanding the issues related to toxicity and environmental impact of nanoscale materials (materials whose structure is on the scale of nanometers, i.e. billionths of a meter). thumb|300px| A rib

thumb| axons|Giant axons of the [[longfin inshore squid (Doryteuthis pealeii) were crucial for scientists to understand the action potential.]]

methods used to achieve pregnancy by artificial or partially artificial means

interdisciplinary branch of biology and engineering

thumb|upright=1.3|Some heavy metals such as copper and zinc are removed from the soil by moving up into the plant roots.

natural genetic exchange of bacteria

A bioreactor is any manufactured device or system that supports a biologically active environment. In one case, a bioreactor is a vessel in which a chemical process is carried out which involves organisms or biochemically active substances derived from such organisms. This process can either be aerobic or anaerobic. These bioreactors are commonly cylindrical, ranging in size from litres to cubic metres, and are often made of stainless steel.

biochemical method to cut and edit DNA

A biopharmaceutical, also known as a biological medical product, or biologic, is any pharmaceutical drug product manufactured in, extracted from, or semisynthesized from biological sources. Different from totally synthesized pharmaceuticals, they include vaccines, whole blood, blood components, allergenics, somatic cells, gene therapies, tissues, recombinant therapeutic protein, and living medicines used in cell therapy. Biopharmaceuticals can be composed of sugars, proteins, nucleic acids, or complex combinations of these substances, or may be living cells or tissues. They (or their precursor

pluripotent stem cells derived from the inner cell mass of blastocysts

class of enzymes

species of fungus of the genus Aspergillus

a medical test to know in less than a few hour a certain condition

thumb|NIST researchers have combined a glass slide, plastic sheets and double-sided tape to create an inexpensive and simple-to-build microfluidic device for exposing an array of cells to different concentrations of a chemical

creation of a genetically identical copy of a human

growing mass of unorganized plant parenchyma cells. a mass of unorganized cells

Transfection is the process of deliberately introducing naked or purified nucleic acids into eukaryotic cells. It may also refer to other methods and cell types, although other terms are often preferred: "transformation" is typically used to describe non-viral DNA transfer in bacteria and non-animal eukaryotic cells, including plant cells. In animal cells, transfection is the preferred term, as the term "transformation" is also used to refer to a cell's progression to a cancerous state (carcinogenesis). Transduction is often used to describe virus-mediated gene transfer into prokaryotic cells.

medical procedure that separates patients into different groups

method in molecular biology; variant of polymerase chain reaction (PCR), is a technique commonly used in molecular biology to detect RNA expression

physical interactions and constructions between multiple proteins

immunochromatographic testing devices

genetic technique

thumb|425x170 px|Left: Unbound aptamer. Right: the aptamer bound to its target protein. The protein is in yellow. Parts of the aptamer that change shape when it binds its target are in blue, while the unchanging parts are in orange. The parts of the aptamer that contact the protein are highlighted in red.

two rules about the percentage of A, C, G, and T in DNA strands

sequencing all the DNA of an individual at once

virus that affects plants

A biopesticide is a biological substance or microorganism that is used to control pests. Invertebrates and macroorganisms used to control pests are usually categorised as biological pest control agents.

Agrobacterium is a genus of Gram-negative bacteria established by H. J. Conn that uses horizontal gene transfer to cause tumors in plants. Agrobacterium tumefaciens is the most commonly studied species in this genus. Agrobacterium is well known for its ability to transfer DNA between itself and plants, and for this reason it has become an important tool for genetic engineering.

thumb|Variety of mushrooms cultivated for culinary use Fungiculture is the cultivation of fungi such as mushrooms. Cultivating fungi can yield foods (which include mostly mushrooms), medicine, construction materials and other products. A mushroom farm is involved in the business of growing fungi.

biological cell that can differentiate into a specific cell type

Biopiracy is the unauthorized appropriation of knowledge and genetic resources of farming and indigenous communities by individuals or institutions seeking exclusive monopoly control through patents or intellectual property. While bioprospecting is the act of exploring natural resources for undiscovered chemical compounds with medicinal or anti-microbial properties, commercial success from bioprospecting leads to the company's attempt at protecting their intellectual property rights on indigenous medicinal plants, seeds, genetic resources, and traditional medicines.

pharmaceutical drug

synthetic nucleic acid (eight nucleobases — four natural, and four synthetic)

biochemical method

300px|thumb|right|Schematic representation of how monoclonal antibodies are generally made from hybridomas. To make ZMapp, the genes encoding for the antibodies were extracted from the hybridomas, genetically engineered to replace mouse components with human components, and [[transfected into tobacco plants.]]

Biotransformation is the biochemical modification of one chemical compound or a mixture of chemical compounds. Biotransformations can be conducted with whole cells, their lysates, or purified enzymes. Increasingly, biotransformations are effected with purified enzymes. Major industries and life-saving technologies depend on biotransformations.

type of immunoglobulin

Pyrosequencing is a non-electrophoretic DNA sequencing (determining the order of nucleotides in DNA) method based on the "sequencing by synthesis" principle, in which the sequencing is performed by detecting the nucleotide incorporated by a DNA polymerase. Pyrosequencing relies on light detection based on a chain reaction when pyrophosphate is released, hence, the name given it.