1. Dr.Mohammed Al-Askeri, 2014-2015,Biotechnology lec.1
University of Al-Qadisiyha
College of Biotechnology
Medical Biotechnology Dep.
introduction to Biotechnology
Dr.Mohammed Al-Askeri

2. Dr.Mohammed Al-Askeri, 2014-2015,Biotechnology lec.1
1. What is Biotechnology?
Definitions of Biotechnology
Timeline of Biotechnology
Techniques used in Biotechnology
Who's Who in Biotechnology
2. How is Biotechnology being used?
Applications of Biotechnology
Medicines on the market today
Agriculture - GM Foods and Animals
DNA fingerprinting and forensic science
Gene Therapy and Transgenic Animals
Human Embryonic Stem Cells and Cloning

3. Dr.Mohammed Al-Askeri, 2014-2015,Biotechnology lec.1
What is biotechnology?
Dr.mohammed
Biotechnology = bios (life) + logos (study of or essence)
Literally ‘the study of tools from living things’
CLASSIC: The word "biotechnology" was first used in 1917 to describe processes using living organisms to make a product or run a process, such as industrial fermentations.
LAYMAN: Biotechnology began when humans began to plant their own crops, domesticate animals, ferment juice into wine, make cheese, and leaven bread

4. GENENTECH: Biotechnology is the process of harnessing 'nature's own' biochemical tools to make possible new products and processes and provide solutions to society's ills (G. Kirk Raab, Former President and CEO of Genentech)
WEBSTER’S: The aspect of technology concerned with the application of living organisms to meet the needs and ends of man.
WALL STREET: Biotechnology is the application of genetic engineering and DNA technology to produce therapeutic and medical diagnostic products and processes. Biotech companies have one thing in common - the use of genetic engineering and manipulation of organisms at a molecular level.

5. Dr.Mohammed Al-Askeri, 2014-2015,Biotechnology lec.1
Using scientific methods with organisms to produce new products or new forms of organisms
Any technique that uses living organisms or substances from those organisms or substances from those organisms to make or modify a product, to improve plants or animals, or to develop microorganisms for specific uses

6. Biotechnology is a multidisciplinarian in nature, involving input from
Engineering
Computer Science
Cell and Molecular Biology
Microbiology
Genetics
Physiology
Biochemistry
Immunology
Virology
Recombinant DNA Technology  Genetic manipulation of bacteria, viruses, fungi, plants and animals, often for the development of specific products

7. What are the stages of biotechnology?
Ancient Biotechnology
early history as related to food and shelter, including domestication
Classical Biotechnology
built on ancient biotechnology
fermentation promoted food production
medicine
Modern Biotechnology
manipulates genetic information in organism
genetic engineering

8. Ancient biotechnology
History of domestication and agriculture
Paleolithic society – Hunter-gatherers  Nomadic lifestyle due to migratory animals and edible plant distribution (wild wheat and barley) (~2 x 106 yrs.)
Followed by domestication of plants and animals (artificial selection)  People settled, sedentary lifestyles evolved (~10,000 yrs. ago)
Cultivation of wheat, barley and rye (seed collections)
Sheep and goats  milk, cheese, button and meat
Grinding stones for food preparation
New technology  Origins of Biotechnology  Agrarian Societies
History of domestication and agriculture History of domestication and agriculture History of domestication and agriculture

9. Fermented foods and beverages
Long history of fermented foods since people began to settle (9000 BC) (fervere –to boil)
Often discovered by accident!
Improved flavor and texture
Deliberate contamination with bacteria or fungi (molds)
Examples:
Bread
Yogurt
Sour cream
Cheese
Wine
Beer
Sauerkraut

10. Fermented foods and beverages
Dough not baked immediately would undergo spontaneous fermentation  would rise  Eureka!!
Uncooked fermented dough could be used to ferment a new batch  no longer reliant on “chance fermentation”
1866 – Louis Pasteur published his findings on the direct link between yeast and sugars  CO2 + ethanol (anaerobic process)
1915 – Production of baker’s yeast – Saccharomyces cerevisiae

11. Classical biotechnology
Industry today exploits early discoveries of the fermentation process for production of huge numbers of products
Different types of beer
Vinegar
Glycerol
Acetone
Butanol
Lactic acid
Citric acid
Antibiotics – WWII (Bioreactor developed for large scale production, e.g. penicilin made by fermentation of penicillium)
Today many different antibiotics are produced by microorganisms
Cephalosporins, bacitracin, neomycin, tetracycline……..)

12. Chemical transformations to produce therapeutic products
Substrate  + Microbial Enzyme  Product
Examples:
Cholesterol  Steroids (cortisone, estrogen, progesterone) (hydroxylation reaction  -OH group added to cholesterol ring)

13. Microbial synthesis of other commercially valuable products
Amino acids to improve food taste, quality or preservation
Enzymes (cellulase, collagenase, diastase, glucose isomerase, invertase, lipase, pectinase, protease)
Vitamins
Pigments

14. Modern biotechnology Cell biology
Structure, organization and reproduction
Biochemistry
Synthesis of organic compounds
Cell extracts for fermentation (enzymes versus whole cells)
Genetics
Resurrection of Gregor Mendel’s findings  1866  1900s
Theory of Inheritance (ratios dependent on traits of parents)
Theory of Transmission factors
W.H. Sutton – 1902
Chromosomes = inheritance factors
T.H. Morgan – Drosophila melanogaster

15. Molecular Biology Beadle and Tatum (Neurospora crassa)
One gene, one enzyme hypothesis
Charles Yanofsky  colinearity between mutations in genes and amino acid sequence (E. coli)
Genes determine structure of proteins
Hershey and Chase – 1952
T2 bacteriophage – 32P DNA, not 35S protein is the material that encodes genetic information

16. Watson, Crick, Franklin and Wilkins (1953) X-ray crystallography
1962 – Nobel Prize awarded to three men
Chargaff – DNA base ratios
Structural model of DNA developed
DNA Revolution – Promise and Controversy!!!
Scientific foundation of modern biotechnology
based on knowledge of DNA, its replication, repair and use of enzymes to carry out in vitro splicing DNA fragments

17. Breaking the Genetic Code – Finding the Central Dogma
An “RNA Club” organized by George Gamow (1954) assembled to determine the role of RNA in protein synthesis
Vernon Ingram’s research on sickle cell anemia (1956) tied together inheritable diseases with protein structure
Link made between amino acids and DNA
Radioactive tagging experiments demonstrate intermediate between DNA and protein = RNA
RNA movement tracked from nucleus to cytoplasm  site of protein synthesis

18. DNA  RNA  Protein
Transcription Translation
Genetic code determined for all 20 amino acids by Marshal Nirenberg and Heinrich Matthaei and Gobind Khorana – Nobel Prize – 1968
3 base sequence = codon

19. What are the areas of biotechnology?
Organismic biotechnology
uses intact organisms and does not alter genetic material
Molecular Biotechnology
alters genetic makeup to achieve specific goals
Transgenic organism: an organism with artificially altered genetic material

20. Medicine
human
veterinary
biopharming
Environment
Agriculture
Food products
Industry and manufacturing

21. What are the applications of biotechnology?
Production of new and improved crops/foods, industrial chemicals, pharmaceuticals and livestock
Diagnostics for detecting genetic diseases
Gene therapy (e.g. ADA, CF)
Vaccine development (recombinant vaccines)
Environmental restoration
Protection of endangered species
Conservation biology
Bioremediation
Forensic applications
Food processing (cheese, beer)

22. Cell Culture Monoclonal Antibodies Molecular Biology DNA technology
Transfer of new genes into animal organisms
Anti-cancer drugs
Culture of plants from single cells
Diagnostics
Cell
Culture
Monoclonal
Antibodies
Crime solving
Molecular
Biology
DNA technology
Tracers
Genetic Engineering
Synthesis of specific DNA probes
Cloning
Banks of DNA, RNA and proteins
Synthesis of new proteins
Gene therapy
Mass prodn. of human proteins
Localisation of genetic disorders
New types of plants and animals
New antibiotics
Complete map of the human genome
Resource bank for rare human chemicals
New types of food

23. Biotechnology Timeline
1750 BC The Sumerians brew beer.
500 BC Chinese use moldy soybean curds as an antibiotic to treat boils
1590 Janssen invents the microscope
1675 Leeuwenhoek discovers cells (bacteria, red blood cells)
1830 Proteins are discovered
1833 The first enzymes are isolated
1855 The Eschirium coli bacterium is discovered

24. Biotechnology Timeline
1859 Charles Darwin publishes On the Origin of Species
1864 Louis Pasteur shows all living things are produced by other living things
1865 The age of genetics begins
1902 Walter Sutton coins the term ‘gene’ - proposed that chromosomes carry genes

25. 1910 Chromosomal theory of inheritance proved
1928 Fleming discovers antibiotic properties of certain molds
1941 George Beadle and Edward Tatum propose that one gene makes one protein
1949 Sickle cell anaemia demonstrated to be molecular disease

26. 1952 The ‘Waring Blender’ experiment
1953 The double helix is unravelled
1967 The genetic code is cracked
1973 Recombinant DNA technology begins
1975 First international conference on recombinant DNA technology

27. 1975 DNA sequencing discovered
1975 Monoclonal antibody technology introduced
1978 Genentech Inc. established
1978 Genentech use genetic engineering to produce human insulin in E.coli IPO of $89
1978 Kary Mullis discovers PCR

28. 1989 The Human Genome Project begins
1990 First use of gene therapy
1990 First product of recombinant DNA technology introduced into US food chain
1993 FDA announces that transgenic food is safe
1994 The FLAVRSAVR tomato - first genetically engineered whole food

29. 1996 First mammal cloned from adult cells
1990s First conviction using genetic fingerprinting
1996 Development of Affymetrix GeneChip
1997 First artificial chromosome

30. 1998 Human embryonic stem cells grown
1999 Celera announces completion of Drosophilia genome sequence
% of Human Genome sequence published on web
2001 Human genome project complete