Biotechnology: For Good Health and Quality Food By Gurdip Brar, Ph.D. |
| Biotechnology means different things to different people. What does it mean to you? Cure for dreaded diseases such as Alzheimer's and Parkinson's, plants with human disease-fighting components, or the crops where farmers need not use chemicals to kill crop- eating bugs. Do you know whether you have ever consumed biotech products? You probably do it daily! For example, cheese is now produced using a genetically engineered (GE) enzyme, rennin. Cheese produced using natural or GE rennin is identical in taste and other properties. Biotech soybean products are everywhere. GE products have become an intricate part of our life and in a positive way. What is Biotechnology? Biotechnology is the science of manipulating DNA, RNA or other bio-molecules in or outside of the cells in ways not possible before. It is to construct genes or gene parts, and transfer them to single cell organisms, mammalian or plant cells. Transformed genes are regulated to express and produce new gene products. Organisms ranging from bacteria, cats, sheep, cows and many plant species have been genetically engineered. Technology is increasing our understanding of living things dramatically. How was biotechnology invented? A casual conversation over a beer in 1973, between two professors from the University of California, Berkeley and Stanford University heralded mankind into the biotechnology revolution. Serendipitous nature of discoveries is not uncommon in science. Genentech, the pioneer biotech company, was the first to market GE human growth hormone, and then insulin. Now there are over a thousand biotech companies in the U.S. and other countries. Many companies are spun off of university research. Many US universities have centers for biotech research. Biotechnology has made the impossible possible Not long ago, one would know genes by their function and not see them. Today, we can not only visualize genes; we can create new ones! Commercial production of human growth hormone, considered impossible, is now a routine. In the past, rennin, to produce cheese, was extracted from the stomachs of slaughtered calves and now it is produced in GE organisms. Human insulin, a necessity for diabetic people, was extracted from the pancreas of slaughtered cattle until GE enabled its production in transformed cells. Are these not great feats of biotech? Our own blueprint, the human genome, is now fully sequenced. The genomes of simplest of organisms, to fruit flies to some plants have also been sequenced. In the near future, we should know what changes in genes influence our vital functions and cause disease. The first field test of a genetically engineered plant in the world was in Middleton, Wis. Plant biotechnology was pioneered by a handful of companies, mainly in the US. Agracetus, Inc, (in Middleton -- now part of Monsanto), a pioneer in plant biotech; was the first company in the world to field- test a genetically- engineered plant. My group conducted this in 1986, thus opening the door for commercial development of GE crops. We later pioneered biotech soybean, cotton, rice, peanut, sunflower and corn. Nearly all biotech soybeans, grown on millions of acres around the world, originated in Middleton, WI. Plant Biotechnology is producing crops friendly to people and the environment The US leads the world in plant biotech. At present, Monsanto is the leader followed by Dupont, Novartis, Dow Agro and Bayer. Biotech soybean, cotton, corn, tomato, potato and rapeseed are now approved for growing in the US. Other major countries growing biotech crops are: Argentina, Australia, Brazil, China, France, India, Indonesia, Italy and UK. Most widely grown are crops resistant to the herbicide Roundup providing easy weed control for farmers. Crops resistant to plant eating bugs need fewer chemical sprays. Biotech crops targeting consumer health and taste are expected soon. Another area for biotech crops is to produce bio-fuels for our cars, and homes. Biotechnology is revolutionizing health care Pharmaceuticals used to be developed by screening thousands of compounds for their effectiveness against a particular disease. .Now, knowing the genetic basis of particular disease enables precise and effective ways of finding medicine to cure that disease. The biology of many diseases, however, is very complex and still not well understood. Biotech products are saving millions of lives around the world. They include vaccines, monoclonal antibodies, and other biologicals to prevent or cure a wide range of diseases including hepatitis B, cancers, diabetes, anemia, multiple sclerosis, obesity and heart disease. To meet the challenges of AIDS, cancers, Alzheimer's and other diseases products are also in pipeline. Early detection of a disease makes a difference between life and death. Biotech enables early detection for several diseases. Many additional tests are in development. Challenges for biotechnology include developing vaccines for dreaded diseases such as AIDS, cancers, Alzheimer's, Parkinson's and MS. Some day, it should be possible to detect and repair a defective gene at will. Individualized medicine, using biologicals produced to treat a specific person, will become the norm and not the exception. Biotechnology is the future; the potential is limited by our own imagination Biotechnology creates high paying quality jobs. Many biotech companies such as, Promega, were formed in Madison, WI area. San Diego, the San Francisco Bay area, Los Angeles, Boston, Chicago, St. Louis and the Triangle Park in North Carolina are also hot spots for biotech companies. Our increased understanding of how living creatures function, though complex and challenging, will lead us to better health. Biology has made a staggering progress during the past 50 years. The likely progress during the next 25 years is daunting and limited by our own imagination. Would chips built from DNA molecules be running our computers? Would such chips be faster, cheaper and last longer? Today's biotechnology is very rudimentary when you envision what is about to come! It has the potential for making us our own true masters, and that thought at this time makes some people very uncomfortable. As human beings we are afraid of the change- the fear of the unknown. What if? Send your biotech question to: gurdipbrar@hotmail.com. Gurdip S. Brar, Ph.D. is president, G2DV Technologies, Middleton, WI (formerly with Agracetus, Monsanto Campus) |
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