BIOTECHNOLOGY

noun (Science and Technology) The branch of technology concerned with the use of living organisms (usually micro-organisms) in industrial, medical, and other scientific processes. Etymology: Formed from the combining form bio- and technology. History and Usage: Micro-organisms are capable of carrying out many chemical and physical processes which it is not possible or economic to duplicate: varieties of cheese and wine, for example, are given their distinctive flavours and appearances by the action of bacteria and fungi, and antibiotics such as penicillin could originally only be produced from cultures of particular micro-organisms. During the seventies and eighties the increasing sophistication of genetic engineering, in particular recombinant DNA technology, made it possible for a biotechnologist to 'customize' micro-organisms capable of producing important or useful substances on a large scale. Insulin, interferon, and various hormones and antibodies have been produced by this method, as well as foodstuffs such as mycoprotein. Strains of bacteria which digest oil spills and toxic wastes have also been developed. The commercial importance of biotechnology was recognized in 1980 when the US Supreme Court ruled that such genetically engineered micro-organisms could be patented: during the eighties a number of firms appeared which specialized in the manufacture of substances by these means. Such a business is known as a biotech company or biotech. The potential of these companies as investments was recognized in 1982 by the editors of the science journal Nature, who began publishing performance statistics for the stocks of some representative US companies operating in the field. Conventional brewing and wine making are not usually regarded as biotechnology but many other fermentation processes are. The Times 9 June 1983, p. 22 To an extent, the biotech companies have taken over from the high-techs as the main vehicle for investors' 'risk' dollars. Courier-Mail (Brisbane) 30 June 1986, p. 28 A biotechnologist in London has found a way to make the natural stimulant which triggers the 'immune system' of plants. New Scientist 23 June 1988, p. 48