1. Chapter 8: Biotechnology
Biotechnology is the application of science and technology to living organisms (biology) for the purpose of producing goods and services.
Traditional Biotechnology: Agriculture & Breeding
Crop improvement : Make plants taste better or produce more fruit. Farmers select grains from these plants for the next year’s crop.
Selective breeding makes it possible for desired traits to increase within a population. Ex: farmers obtain cows that produce more milk or sheep that produce more wool.

2. Transformation of Foods using Traditional Biotechnology
Base Food
Used to transform food
Transformed food
Milk
Enzymes
Cheese
Bacteria
Yogurt
Cereal (e.g. barley)
Yeasts
Beer
Cereal (e.g. wheat)
Leavened bread
Juice (e.g. grape juice)
Wine

3. Current Uses of Modern Biotechnology: Agriculture, Food, Medicine
Agriculture and breeding
- plants modified to resist sickness, insects, harsh climates
Food
- to provide higher nutritional value
Medicine
- stem cells to produce replacement tissue and organs
- easier diagnostic procedures, innovative treatments for various human diseases, genetic disorders and/or illnesses and the production of various medications.

4. 5 Major Biotechnologies
Pasteurization
Vaccines
Cell Cultures
Assisted Reproduction
Genetic Transformation

5. 1. Pasteurization
The process whereby food is heated for a period of time in order to destroy harmful micro organisms (such as E. coli bacteria or coli form). Most bacteria cannot survive at too high a temperature.
Many foods are pasteurized such as milk, fruit juice, jam and honey. Raw milk is heated at 78.8oC for 6 seconds which produces pasteurized milk.
Pasteurization is used to:
Provide healthier food
Prolong shelf life of food (allowing for transportation over longer distances and less economic losses from food spoilage)
Preserve the look, taste and nutritional properties of food.

6. 2. Vaccines
A vaccine is a substance introduced into an organism that stimulates an immune response. The immune system makes specific antibodies and immunizes the individual against a given disease.
Immunity is resisting a disease by fighting off the infectious agent causing the disease.
Immune system:
requires time to produce antibodies against an invading agent.
‘remembers’ defeated infections agents producing antibodies quicker when re-exposed.
Copies of most antibodies remain in system.

7. Manufacture of Vaccines
1. Live (or attenuated) vaccines: prepared from living bacteria or viruses; manufacturers select weakened strains (can’t cause disease), allowing body to recognize as foreign, producing antibodies. Examples: measles, rubella, mumps, polio
2. Inactive (or inactivated) vaccines: developed using only part(s) of an infectious agent (antigens) still recognizable by antibodies. Examples: whooping cough, typhoid, cholera, the flu
3. Vaccines derived from genetic engineering: prepared using living viruses and bacteria, genetic material has been modified by manipulating its DNA. Examples: Hep B, HPV
-still in research phase: vaccines for HIV, malaria, some cancers.
Combination Vaccines: vaccines that immunize against multiple diseases.
Boosters: extra doses of vaccines to maximize immune effectiveness.

8. 3. Culturing Cells
Cell culturing : cells are reproduced outside their natural environment (outside the organism they come from).
Allowing scientists:
to control cell growth
(2) to obtain greater quantities of the original microorganism.
(3) understand how cells work
(4) to test medication and beauty products
(5) to verify the toxicity of chemical products which eliminates the need for a good deal of animal testing.
Some cultivated cells’ uses are:
(1) to produce vaccines
(2) to create tissue such as skin for severe burns
(3) to identify Down syndrome
(4) to evaluate a type of leukemia

9. Method for Growing a Cell Culture
1- Collection of sample from an original environment
2- Transfer to an appropriate culture medium
3- Incubation in favourable conditions
4- Growth of new cells

10. Culture medium: sterile environment that contains all the necessary elements to promote cell growth in a culture (usually liquid, called a broth, or solid)
-Liquid media are often used for rapid growth.
-Solid media make it easier to inventory
and identify certain microorganisms
Factors to control
Nutrient composition
Water (humidity)
Mineral level pH
O2 and CO2 levels
Temperature
Pressure
Amount of light

11. Cell growth and preservation
Growth rate in a cell culture is not continuous; it follows a curve that can be divided into 4 phases:

12. Cell growth and preservation
Lag phase: cells adapt to their new environment; there is little or no cell growth.
Logarithmic (log) phase: cells rapidly divide and consume most of the nutrients contained in the culture medium (cell growth rate begins to slow down at the end of this phase).
Stationary phase: new cells are produced and other cells die at the same rate due to a depletion of nutrients, lack of space and/or too much waste.
Death Phase: cell numbers decrease due depletion of nutrients and space and/or an accumulation of waste.
Best to stop and preserve cells at stationary phase.
Cell cultures that need to be preserved can be frozen and sold to researchers who need them for their work.

13. Ethical Standards in Culturing Stem Cells
A norm created to ensure that certain moral principles are being respected.
Embryos must not be obtained through commercial transactions.
Pregnant woman’s embryo must be donated willingly, parent/guardian of minor may give consent.
Pregnant woman must be informed if embryo is used for stem cell research.
Umbilical cord and placenta may be used with both parental consent.

14. 4. Assisted Reproduction
Infertility: the inability to conceive a child after 12 months of sexual intercourse.
Assisted reproduction: medical procedures used to help facilitate the union of an ovum and spermatozoan for the purpose of fertilization.
Examples of treatments: ovarian stimulation, artificial insemination, fertilization by microinjection and in vitro fertilization.

15. Purpose of Artificial Insemination
Animal reproduction
An answer to human infertility
Preservation of the gene pool
Genetic transformation
Food self-sufficiency
- Genetic transformation

16. Processes of Assisted Reproduction
1. Hormonal Treatments: Ovarian Stimulation
Medication used to stimulate ovaries to develop one or more mature ovum during a single ovarian cycle.
Increases odds of fertility.
For women who rarely or never ovulate.
3. Microinjection
similar to in vitro except sperm cells are injected directly into ovum
2. Artificial Insemination
Used when sperm have difficulty passing cervix, or sperm count or mobility is an issue.
Semen injected directly into uterus during ovulation.

17. 4. In Vitro Fertilization
Fertilization of an ovum by sperm in a test tube or petri dish (usually multiple) then implanted into uterus.
Steps:
1. Ovarian stimulation
2. Retrieval of ova and
collection of sperm
3. Fertilization in lab and
placed in a cultural
medium
4. Selection of embryos to implant
5. Transfer of embryos to
the uterus (2-4)

18. Genetic Transformation
Genetic transformation: to improve a species’ ability to adapt to a particular environment by adding one or more genes from another species or removing or modifying its genes
Example: Arctic flounder live in frigid water. Its genes enable it to secrete a substance that protects it from the cold. Researchers transferred those genes to salmon. Genetically modified salmon are now able to resist the cold. (See salmon example in textbook on p. 245)
A GMO (genetically modified organism) is a living organism that has had its DNA modified.

19. Application in the Agro-food Industry
GMOs applied to plants can produce
Resistance to herbicides, insects, viruses
Delayed ripening
Improve nutritional properties
Reduce allergic effects.
GMOs applied to animals
Increase growth rate
Less harmful manure (pigs)
Lactose-free milk
Cows milk more similar to human milk