"Sometimes people ask me what field I'd be in if not computers. I think I'd be working in biotechnology. I expect to see breathtaking advances in medicine over the next two decades, and biotechnology researchers and companies will be at the center of that progress"
- Bill Gates, New York Times, June 18, 1996.
That is Bill Gates for you stating the enormous potentials of the brave new world of Biotechnology in the near future. Coming as it does from one of the world's sharpest business minds, his statement saves me a lot of laborious and sermonizing arguments to convince you that biotech age has indeed stealthily but surely arrived.
But, if you think Bill Gates is a congenital liar-capitalist and self serving manipulator of technological trend, then let me do my bit of hardsell.
According to the Ernst and Young, the highly reliable international professional service firm, the global biotechnology
industry is estimated to rake in $US50 billion in the next eight years. In its annual report on biotechnology industry
entitled "Beyond Borders", India also figures prominently among countries poised to make it to the gene-bandwagon
in style. Worth $3 billion in 1997, the total biotech product market (medical, agricultural,
functional food/ nutritional, research products and services) in India is expected to
rise to $9 billion by 2005.
The Report also identifies the low cost of innovation, low-cost manufacturing base, government support,
R&D infrastructure, established pharmaceutical industry and venture capital as the factors fuelling the
growth of the biotech industry in India. Operational costs-the usual suspect- in India are one-seventh to one-tenth
of those in developed markets and among the lowest in the world.
All this is fine, but what exactly is biotechnology?
Many people including me (before I wrote this piece) can't differentiate between genes and jeans or
might think stems cell are a line of new products from Eveready torchlight cells makers. Unless you are a
Life Sciences graduate or a bright prodigy in the making, it is bound to split your grey cells.
After all, it's all in our genes not to know something until we learn about it. So, don't blame yourself.
In layman's language, biotechnology is a general term describing the directed modification of biological processes.
This may be accomplished by introducing new genes into organisms, breeding organisms to form new variants, or
treating organisms with specific compounds. Modern biotechnology has leapt to highly advanced gene technology and beyond,
and is an interdisciplinary subject covering biomedical research, microbiology, physics, chemistry,
mathematics and engineering. The core applications of biotechnology lie in health care, agriculture and
animal husbandry and industry.
One controversial but widely known issue that is the fallout of advances in biotechnology is the Cloning. Criticized as
unethical and irresponsible, cloning has become a Pandora 's Box ever since the first animal clone,
Dolly, the sheep was successfully created at Roslin Institute, Edinburgh in 1997.
Ethical questions and abuse of cloning-especially of humans- have become the most talked about topic in the scientific world.
Proponents of cloning emphatically says that cloning is the key to curing deadly diseases like Cancer,
AIDS, Alzheimer, etc., grow tissues to replace diseased or paralyzed human organs and help infertile couples have
children.
Detractors of cloning, however, recommend caution and claims that cloning is a process doomed to fail.
From a scientific point of view, human reproductive cloning is unsafe and unacceptable," says Jaenisch, an MIT biology
professor, a founding member of the Cambridge, MA-based Whitehead Institute for Biomedical Research, and one of
the world's top researchers in the science of cloning. Reproductive cloning, he argues, shortcuts
basic biological processes, making normal offspring impossible to produce. And unlike the early days of
in vitro fertilization (IVF), he says, this is not a technical hurdle that can be overcome with
more advances-it's a fundamental biological problem.
Still unperturbed by these warnings, maverick biotechnologists like Severino Antinori and Panos Zavos, an
American researcher and Avi Ben Abraham, an Israeli biotechnologist are already in their mid-way to producing
the first baby produced with cloning technology.
While time only can tell if cloning will be a reliable and safe technology and prove to be a boon as a tool in curing fatal diseases,
fruits of biotechnology are already being harvested in agriculture and husbandry. High yielding bio engineered crops are already
seen in the shelves of super markets and becoming a popular choice of consumers, albeit some opposition. Some of the drugs
we use today are the results of discovery through arduous analysis of the human genomic data.
Talking of human genomic data, biologists are increasingly becoming dependant on it for research into the causes and
cures of certain hitherto inexplicable diseases. By studying the 30,000 genes that make up the human body, scientists,
as already pointed out, are breaking new grounds as far as drug discovery is concerned by altering the functions
of the DNA. In a way, human genomic data is to the biotechnologist what Periodic Table is to the chemists.
The importance of analyzing the human genomic data has spawned a whole branch of biotechnology called bioinformatics ( Read Article )
"The marriage of IT and biotechnology is loosely called bio-informatics,'' explains Richard N Perham, professor of structural
biochemistry at Cambridge University. Bioinformaticians work with data generated by the experimental biology community and by a
growing number of "data factory" projects (e.g., genome sequencing projects). Mining this data to develop new hypotheses,
new models of how biological systems function, and even rules and patterns (which can be used to screen new data sets), is the work
of bioinformatics.
As professional data analysts in a specialized field, bioinformaticist not only requires to possess high proficiency in
using existing software, but also be equally adept at developing new algorithm to suit to unique computational needs.
The key skills that are essential in the bioinformatics field are:
- Understanding of the scientific method: how experiments are designed and carried out to test hypotheses,
and standards for reporting scientific research.
- Understanding the foundations of molecular biology: how genomic information is transmitted and used in living cells.
- Facility with computers: everything from the ability to learn to use new software quickly to the ability to work comfortably in a command-line (Unix) environment.
- Knowledge of a programming language such as C or C++ and a scripting language, such as Perl or Python.
So, in a nutshell, if you're going to be a programmer on a bioinformatics project, what you need to learn is enough
biology so that you can talk to biological scientists, because they will be asking you to put their ideas into
action on the computer. That means knowing on a general level what the important molecules of life are
(DNA, RNA, proteins, metabolites), what they're made of, and what kinds of things they do.
Careers in biotechnology are poised to become the hottest options for science students as biotech industry is expected
to leapfrog through the next 20 years.
As this industry is relatively new, there are opportunities galore for the aspirants wishing to plunge into this brave new world.
And for the IT inclined and those strongly grounded in life sciences, mathematics, statistics, physics and chemistry,
the emerging field of bioinformatics holds out lot of promises.
The fact that this sector is facing a shortage of skilled workers is also a bonus for the aspirants.
You can be a research scientist, teacher, marketing manager, quality control officer or production in-charge in the food,
chemical and pharmaceutical industry. Though research confines a biotechnologist's main work to laboratories,
as Nancy Lane, scientist in cell biology at Cambridge University, says, "It is a global activity involving a lot of
international exchange and opportunities to travel and see the world.''
The major institutes in India offering research facilities are:
Council for Scientific and Industrial Research, New Delhi
National Environmental Engineering Research Institute, Nagpur
Centre for Cellular and Molecular Biology, Hyderabad
National Institute of Immunology, New Delhi
Indian Agricultural Research Institute, New Delhi
Department of Biotechnology
Defence Research and Development Organisation
Department of Science and Technology
National Facility for Tissues and Cell Culture, Pune
Indian Council for Medical Research, New Delhi
Indian Institute of Science, Bangalore.
All India Biotechnology Entrance Examination
Combined Entrance examination for admission to M.Sc./M.Sc.(Agri.)/M.V.Sc.(Animal) Biotech/M.Tech. Biotechnology is
conducted by Jawaharlal Nehru University at various participating Universities as per details given against each programme
at the undermentioned centres.
Ahmedabad, Amritsar, Bangalore, Baroda, Bhubaneshwar, mumbai, Calcutta, Callcut, Chandigarh, Coimbatore, Dehradun, Delhi, Dharwar,
Guwahati, Goa, Hyderabad, Indore, Jaipur, Jammu, Lucknow, Chennai, Madural, Pant Nagar, Pondicherry, Danapur Cantt (Bihar), Pune,
Ranchi, Shillong, Shimla, Thiuvanathapuram, Varanast and Vijayawada.
Eligibility for Post Graduation Courses
M Sc Biotechnology
Candidates with bachelor's degree under 10+2+3 pattern of education in Physical, Biological, Agricltural, Veterinary,
Fishery Sciences, Pharmacy, Engineering, Technology or Medicine (MBBS) with at least 55% marks are eligible to apply for
M.Sc. Biotechnology at
(I) Banaras Hindu University, Varanasi
(2) Birsa Agriculutral University, Ranchi
(3) Calicut University, Kerala
(4) Central University, Hyderabad
(5) Devi Ahilya Vishwavidyalaya, Indore
(6) G.B Pant University of Agriculture & Technology, Pant Nagar
(7) Goa University, Goa
(8) Guru Nanak Dev Univesity, Amritsar
(9) Himachal Pradesh University, Shimla
(10) Jawaharlal Nehru University, New Delhi
(11) M S University of Baroda, Baroda
(12) Madural Mamaraj University, Madurai
(13) Punjab Univesity, Chandigarh
(14)Pondicherry University, Pondicerry
(15) Poona University, Pune
(16) Punabi Univesity, Patiala
(17) Tezpur University, Assam
(18) Jammu University.
M Sc (Agriculture) Biotechnology/M V Sc Animal Biotechnology
Candidates with bachelor's degree in agriculture, horticulture, forestry, fishery, Veterinary Sciences or Agricultural
Engineering and (only B V Sc degree for Tamil Nadu Veterinary and Animal Sciences University, Chennai) with 70% marks or
CGPA of at least 3 out of 4; or 7 our of 10 in the grading system in case of Tamil Nadu Agricultural,
University of Tamil Nadu Veterinary and Animal Sciences (10+2+4) and 55% marks in case of G.B.Pant
University of Agriculture & Technology are eligible to apply (10+2+3 Pattern).
M Tech Biotechnology
Candidates possessing B Tech degree with minimum 60% marks or equivalent in chemical Engineering, Biochemical Engineering, Industrial Biotech (BE), Leather technology, Pharmaceutical Technology, Food Technology, B. Pharma, and Dairy Technology or Master's Botany, Zoology Bio-chemistry, Microbiology, Genetics, Physiology, Pharmacology and Biophysics are eligible to apply for M Tech, Industrial Biotech (BE) Biotechnology offered at Anna University, Chennai & Jadavpur University, Calcutta.
Scholarship / Fellowship
Candidates selected for admission in participating Universities are generally eligible for scholarship at the rates indicated below; M.Sc. Biotechnology Rs. 400; M.Sc. (Agri.) Biotechnology Rs. 800; M.Tech Biotechnology Rs. 1800(details for financial assistance/scholarship for students in respect; of Central University; Pondicherry, Punjabi University Patiala and Tamil Nadu Veterinary and Animal Sciences University, Chennai may be had directly from concerned Universities).
Reservations
The reservation of seats for SC/ST and other categories is in accordance with the rules of the respective participating Universities in the cae of JNU 22% of the seats are reserved for SC/ST candidates (15% for SC and 7-1/2 for ST) and 3% for the Physically Handicapped Candidates.
Other Courses
- MSc/MVSc in Vetrinary Biotechnology is a 2 years course at the Indian Veterinary Research institute, Izatnagar (UP)
- Medical Biotechnology (PG course) is offered at All India Institute of Medical Sciences New Delhi
and University of Delhi (PG/MPhil?PhD).(Dr. B.R.Ambedkad Centre of Biomedical Research)
- Marine Biotechnology (M.Sc.) can be studied at Goa University
- MTech in Biomedical Engineering and Biotechnology is available at Jadavpur University. IIT Delhi and Kharagpur,
Anna University, Madras.
- IIT Bombay ------ www.iitb.ernet.in
- IIT Roorkee ----- www.iitr.ernet.in
- Cochin University
(Some of the quotes attributed to certain subjects in this article have been culled from related articles in the internet and offline publications. This author does not take any responsibility for their verity).
The author is a freelance journalist based in New Delhi. The author can be reached at [email protected]
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