Biotechnology Questions/Vocab

What is recombinant DNA?

DNA that has been formed artificially by combining constituents from different organisms.

What is the purpose of the polymerase chain reaction?

Makes many copies of a gene or other DNA segment. This might be done in order to make large quantities of a gene for genetic testing. PCR involves three steps: denaturing, annealing, and extension. They are repeated many times in a cycle to make large quantities of the gene.

Identify an ethical, legal, or social issue raised by biotechnology. State your view on the issue, and develop a logical argument to support your view.

Who owns genetically modified organisms such as bacteria? Can such organisms be patented like inventions? • Are genetically modified foods safe to eat? Might they have unknown harmful effects on the people who consume them? • Are genetically engineered crops safe for the environment? Might they harm other organisms or even entire ecosystems? • Who controls a person's genetic information? What safeguards ensure that the information is kept private? • How far should we go to ensure that children are free of mutations? Should a pregnancy be ended if the fetus has a mutation for a serious genetic disorder? *the pros of biotechnology may be obvious, but the cons may not be known until it is too late. Unforeseen harm may be done to people, other species, and entire ecosystems. No doubt the ethical, legal, and social issues raised by biotechnology will be debated for decades to come.

polymerase chain reaction (PCR)

a process used in molecular biology to amplify a single copy or a few copies of a piece of DNA across several orders of magnitude, generating thousands to millions of copies of a particular DNA sequence.

synthetic biology

an interdisciplinary branch of biology and engineering. The subject combines various disciplines from within these domains, such as biotechnology, evolutionary biology, molecular biology, systems biology, biophysics, computer engineering, and genetic engineering.

Identify the steps of gene cloning.

isolation - an enzyme is used to break DNA at a specific base sequence - this is done to isolate a gene ligation - enzyme DNA ligase combines the isolated gene with plasmid DNA from bacteria - the DNA that results is called recombinant DNA transformation - the recombinant DNA is inserted into a living cell, usually a bacterial cell - changing an organism in this way is also called genetic engineering selection - involves growing transformed bacteria to make sure they have the recombinant DNA - this is a necessary step because transformation is not always successful - only bacteria that contain the recombinant DNA are selected for further use.

Explain how bacteria can be genetically engineered to produce a human protein.

its genetically modified to produce useful human proteins including human growth hormone and human insulin. One advantage of using bacteria is that they can be grown in large fermenters, producing large amounts of these useful proteins.

transgenic crop

plant contains a gene or genes which have been artificially inserted instead of the plant acquiring them through pollination

Define biotechnology.

the exploitation of biological processes for industrial and other purposes, especially the genetic manipulation of microorganisms for the production of antibiotics, hormones, etc.

genetic engineering

the modification of an organism's genetic composition by artificial means, often involving the transfer of specific traits, or genes, from one organism into a plant or animal of an entirely different species.

gene cloning

the process in which a gene of interest is located and copied (cloned) out of DNA extracted from an organism.

pharmacogenomics

the study of how genes affect a person's response to drugs. This relatively new field combines pharmacology (the science of drugs) and genomics (the study of genes and their functions) to develop effective, safe medications and doses that will be tailored to a person's genetic makeup.

recombinant DNA

the term used to describe the combination of two DNA strands that are constructed artificially. Genetic scientists can do this to create unique DNA strand for different purposes, using several types of techniques.

biotechnology

the use of living systems and organisms to develop or make products, or "any technological application that uses biological systems, living organisms or derivatives thereof, to make or modify products or processes for specific use