Biotechnology is the future
The biotechnology market is a growing market despite the controversial discussions ongoing. Scientific and medical world already can´t survive without the technologies and products based on biotechnology.
As long as the hunger for knowledge of human beings exist, biotechnology will be driven forward by this motor. The biotechnology segment covers a large and wide area, such as agriculture, antibody technologies, biopharmaceuticals, drug development, environmental biotechnology, gene therapy, genomics, informatics, instrumentation and equipment, molecular biology, pharmaceuticals, tissue engineering and wound care.
Conventional biotechnology versus genetic engineering
Nowadays many people just mean “genetic engineering” when they speak about biotechnology. In fact this is wrong, as biotechnology also covers (in principle) everything which is using biological material for technical processes in a wide definition, so including well-know uses as the production of wine, beer and cheese.
In contrast genetic engineering, the use of various methods to manipulate the DNA (genetic coding) of cells to modify hereditary traits, is a very recent invention created around 1973. Already 1978 the first modified insulin has been brought to the market as the start of a long row of discoveries.
In between is a method also used for centuries: Using the “natural” mutations as a process of “natural” selection of the best suitable genetic code. For example the development of black or white skin in humas depending on the amount of sun - certainly a black skin did improve the biological situation for those in southern countries. The same principle was used in agriculture to select the best crop.
The key to human health
There are already many biotechnology products in the world today, including drugs and vaccines which have been approved by FDA and EMEA. In addition research is still going to coninue, which a huge pipeline of biotechnology drug products and vaccines clinical trials and expected for the next years. The development is fortunatley focussed on many diseases where currently only limited treatent is available, like cancer, AIDS, Alzheimer’s disease, Morbus Parkinson and stroke.
Beside this also less severe diseases like hair loss and even beauty treatments will at the end gain from the innovation coming out of the labs.
As well biotechnology will have a bigh impact on “old” pharmaceutical industry, driving them either to change their business model or to cooperate with biotech companies.
Feed the world
Beside this biotechnology will play a majour role in ensuring the availability for enough food on this world. The development of better genetic material and on the other side options to limit the use of pesticides will have significant impact on food production in the next decade.
Photo courtesy of USDA NRCS
Still many people die from hunger - biotechnology might help many of them. But some risk have to be evaluated carefully. Read more about biotechnology and agriculture