Biotechnology is the application of biology and genetic engineering in the production of substances and processes that are beneficial to mankind. Though the term 'bio-technology' has come into vogue in the last few decades, the subject, as we know it today, has existed since the beginning of the 20th century. In fact, the Leeds City Council in England had set up an Institute of Biotechnology (Bureau of Biotechnology) as far back as the 1920s. But the essence of Biotechnology, i.e., human intervention in a biological process has been with us since pre historic times. Biotechnology has been defined in many ways and its interpretations too are often confounding. This has a lot to do with the fact that it is a multidisciplinary activity encompassing bio-medical research, microbiology, physics, chemistry, mathematics and engineering.

Biotechnology is based on the catalytic activities of the cell - the basic unit of living matter - either intact cells or extracts from them. An offshoot of biotechnological research in recent years is genetic engineering which involves gene mutation, DNA cloning and tissue culture technology. These new developments have opened up altogether new possibilities and opportunities and constitute one of the fastest growing and exciting branches of science. After the IT revolution, Biotechnology is poised to become the next big engine for growth in the 21st century. Already dubbed as a 'sunrise industry' BT has enormous prospects globally and the last three to five years has seen explosive growth in this area with far reaching impact in the areas of plant biotech, medical research and transgenic technology.

Biotechnologists are engaged a research related to medical and health care areas, agricultural productivity and crop resilience, cross breeding of animals and fish and mind-boggling manipulations involving DNA, enzymes and microorganisms.

To join the biotechnological field one can either do B.Tech in industrial biotechnology at Anna University - entrance test for which is held by the Jawaharlal Nehru University (JNU), or one can take up B.SC in Bio-technology or any other related biological field viz. - Biochemistry, Microbiology, Genetics and Molecular biology, Biophysics etc.

After this, if one chooses to do post graduation, he/she can do M.SC in Biotechnology in any of the Universities offering the subject. There is a combined entrance examination for admission to M.SC/ M.Tech Biotechnology, conducted by the JNU, for various participating universities. The scope for doctoral and postdoctoral research in biotechnology is vast. Some of the premier institutes engaged in Biotech Research in India are:

National Institute of Immunology.

National Centre for Cell Science.

Centre for DNA finger printing and Diagnostics.

National Brain Research Centre.

National Centre for Plant Genoma Research.

National Bio Resource Development Board.

Students admitted to the M.Sc programme in Biotechnology can choose from a wide range of courses.

These include: -- Cell Biology and Virology. -- Biochemistry and Biophysics. -- Genetics and Molecular Biology -- Micro biology -- Animal Cell Culture -- Plant Tissue Culture -- Computer applications and Bio-statistics.

Other specialised courses are: -- Genetic Engineering -- Immunology -- Enzymes Technology -- Industrial Microbiology -- Fermentation Technology -- Environmental Biotechnology and -- Marine Biotechnology

Biotechnology being an emerging area of research with enormous prospects globally is also one of the fastest growing employment avenues. The three main growth areas in this discipline are biochemistry, molecular biology and transgenic technology, covering health and medicine, agriculture and food technologies, animal husbandry and industry. A biotechnologist can opt for research in any of the government Institutes and organisations.

Alternatively, he/she can find employment in private biotech firms, research labs or biochemical industries. There are many private establishments that have been identified by the Department of Biotechnology (Government of India) for research, development and production, relating to the manufacture of agrochemicals, microbial enzymes, clonal propagation, pharmaceuticals, dairy development, medicine, ocean engineering, tissue culture and other research work. Some major firms recruiting biotechnologists are: Central Drugs Research Institute, Lucknow, Ranbaxy, Lupin Labs, Dr. Reddy's Lab, Shantha Biotics, Torrent, Cadilla, Hoechst, Biocon, Bharat Biotech International Ltd etc.

Some notable research organisations where biotechnologists are in demand are: Council for Scientific and Industrial Research (CSIR); National Environmental Engineering Research Institute, Nagpur; Centre for Cellular and Molecular Biology, Hyderabad; National Institute of Immunology, New Delhi; Indian Agriculture Research Institution, New Delhi; Department of Bio-technology; Defence Research and Development Organisation; Department Science and Technology; National Facility for Tissues and Cell Culture; Pune; Indian Council for Medical Research, New Delhi; and Indian Institute of Science, Bangalore.

A Biotechnologist can look forward to a lucrative career whether he goes in for research in a government organisation or a private biotech or pharma company. A fresh graduate may join a government organisation as a Junior Research Fellow and work his way up right to the level of a Director with the rewards increasing commensurately with the responsibilities. Similarly in a private company, the entry level positions for graduates start with trainees and promotions go right up to Vice President/ President levels, with salaries at par, if not better than other private sector firms.

A thorough understanding of field can throw up lucrative business opportunities, especially for small and medium enterprises. An area where these SMEs can really work profitably is contract research. At present there is a dearth of committed entrepreneurs and also the lack of venture capital. One reason is that there is a poor understanding of the biotech field in general and the risk perception is also high because of the long gestation period (development phase), high research product failure and astronomical cost of patenting. But with the value of the worldwide biotech market growing by leaps and bounds, more and more business ventures in biotech will emerge. In recent years, the Indian Institute of Science (IISc) has allowed its faculty to become entrepreneurs, leading to the setting up of Strand Genomics, a bio-informatics start up.

Some typical job descriptions are given below covering :

• Laboratory, (R&D)
• Quality Control
• Clinical Research
• Manufacturing and Production
• Regulatory Affairs
• Information Systems
• Marketing and Sales and
• Administration
• Research and Development - Lab Assistant - Research Associate - Research Assistant - Post doctoral Fellow - Media Prep Technician - Project Planners
• Quality Control - Quality Control Analyst - Quality Control Engineer - Environmental Health and Safety Specialist - Quality Assurance Auditor - Validation Engineer- Validation Technician
• Clinical Research - Clinical Co-ordinator - Clinical Programmer - Bio Statistician - Clinical Data Specialist
• Manufacturing and Production: - Production Development Engineer - Production Planner Scheduler - Manufacturing Technician - Manufacturing Research Associate - Instrument/ Calibration Technician - Biochemical Development Associate - Assay Analyst (cell cultures on tissues) - Manufacturing Engineer.
• Regulatory Affairs: - Regulatory Affairs Specialists - Documentation Coordinator - Documentation Specialist
• Information Specialist: - Library Assistant - Scientific Programmer Analyst
• Marketing & Sales: - Market Research Analyst - Systems Analyst - Sales Representative - Customer Service Representative
• Administration: - Technical Recruiter - Human Resource officer - Stores officer - Patent Administrator - Patent Agent

There are three major branches of biotechnology that have seen explosive growth over the last decade.

There are :

Diagnostic Techniques :

two branches of biotechnology have played a key role in production of diagnostic materials -

Now, however, by using the new techniques of genetic engineering, scientists can locate and analyse single genes in a chain of thousands. They can make "gene probes" - segments of DNA that match and will bind with the DNA segments of individual genes. By recognising DNA sequences associated with genetic diseases, scientists can now select the genes for a number of genetic conditions in tissue samples from adults or even embryos and forecast the incidence of crippling genetic defects. Based on this they can carry out genetic counselling aimed at reducing the occurrence and managing disorders where treatment is possible. DNA fingerprinting is another area where biotechnologists have proved invaluable. With the knowledge that no two individuals have the same genetic composition, forensic scientists are now able to identify individuals from small traces of tissue left at the crime site. By treating DNA from a tissue or blood sample with various restriction enzymes, forensic scientists have developed an extremely sensitive method of genetic fingerprinting. Cell/ Tissue Culture: Making clones from a single part of one plant involves a process known as tissue culture.

Cultures of plant cells, grown by using fermentation type techniques may eventually replace agricultural production. But plant cells are not as easy to grow in culture as microorganisms. A more useful application of biotechnology is to create exact genetic copies or clones of an individual with desirable properties. To do this, cells are taken from the meristem - the rapidly growing tissue at the point of the root or shoot. These are sterilised and placed in a nutrient solution in a Petri dish where they multiply, forming an undifferentiated mass of tissue, which is called Callus.

If Callus is divided and injected with plant hormones and nutrients, then roots and shoots will develop giving rise to plantlets. These can then be grown in the usual way producing genetically identical plants. Plant tissue culture does not require expensive equipment and holds the key to solving agricultural problems related to food production and industrial applications in the future.

Biotechnology is one of the fastest growing disciplines among all the sciences. If the last few decades of the 20th century belonged to Information Technology, this century is expected to be dominated by biotechnology. Today a large number of biological and medical scientists are involved in research that is providing one breakthrough after another in the areas of health care, transonic technology, environmental engineering, animal and plant clothing, food and chemical industries.

Economists predict that engineers and scientists trained in biotechnological fields will not only be in great demand but also command high salary and high quality job environments. Compensation in Biotech companies is competitive and often includes incentives like stock option plans, cash bonus, stock purchase plans etc. On the flip side, Biological and medical scientists who work in applied research or product development use knowledge provided by basic research but they usually have less autonomy than basic researchers in choosing the emphasis of their research, having to rely on market driven directions based on a company’s products and goals.