Genetic Engineering and Biotechnology

Preview:

Genetic engineering is a process in which recombinant DNA (rDNA) technology is used to introduce desirable traits into organisms.  A genetically engineered (GE) animal is one that contains a recombinant DNA (rDNA) construct producing a new trait.  While conventional breeding methods have long been used to produce more desirable traits in animals, genetic engineering is a much more targeted and powerful method of introducing desirable traits into animals. 

In its purest form, the term "biotechnology" refers to the use of living organisms or their products to modify human health and the human environment. Prehistoric biotechnologists did this as they used yeast cells to raise bread dough and to ferment alcoholic beverages, and bacterial cells to make cheeses and yogurts and as they bred their strong, productive animals to make even stronger and more productive offspring. 

Throughout human history, we have learned a great deal about the different organisms that our ancestors used so effectively. The marked increase in our understanding of these organisms and their cell products gains us the ability to control the many functions of various cells and organisms. Using the techniques of gene splicing and recombinant DNA technology, we can now actually combine the genetic elements of two or more living cells.

 Human Genome Project. Its mission is to identify the full set of genetic instructions contained inside our cells and to read the complete text written in the language of the hereditary chemical DNA (deoxyribonucleic acid).Human Genome Project research will help solve one of the greatest mysteries of life: How does one fertilized egg "know" to give rise to so many different specialized cells, such as those making up muscles, brain, heart, eyes, skin, blood.

Narrative/ Things I Learned

As we say life is mysterious, but science can clearly explained the mysteries of life. This are the application of the works of Genetic Engineers and  Bio technicians. Human Genome Project also taught us

Knowledge about the effects of DNA variations among individuals can lead to revolutionary new ways to diagnose, treat, and someday prevent the thousands of disorders that affect us. Besides providing clues to understanding human biology.

Source: 

Introduction - The Human Genome Project

National Center for Human Genome Research, National Institutes of Health. "New Tools for Tomorrow's Health Research." Bethesda, MD: Department of Health and Human Services, 1992.

Pamela Peters, from Biotechnology: A Guide To Genetic Engineering. Wm. C. Brown Publishers, Inc., 1993.