It’s the year 2050

Imagine it is 2050…….

Anything is possible….

Why not?

Your personal clone is…..

•At school while you are sleeping

•Is working while you are hanging out with friends

•Is doing the laundry while you are watching TV

•Is doing everything you don’t want to do……

What is in your fridge in 2050?

Eggplants, anyone?

Melon grapes?

Neurodegenerative disorders are now treatable

A Canavan Disease patient goes home after gene therapy

Goodbye global warming!

Bioengineered algae are now the standard fuel

Biotechnology: Endless possibilities and countless issues

Biotechnology is…………………………….?

When I think of biotechnology, I think of………?

Biotechnology defined

• Many different definitions exist

• E.g. The use of living organisms or their products for the welfare of humanity.

• E.g. The use of scientific techniques to improve or modify plants, animals and microorganisms.

• Does biotechnology = genetic engineering?

Biotechnology is an interdisciplinary field, which has resulted from the blending of approaches from many different disciplines.

Biotechnology draws on which disciplines?

Biotechnology (old:new)

Traditional vs. Modern biotechnologyFor example, fermentation is an older biotechnology while cloning is recent.

The oldest application of biotechnology dates back to about 8000 B.C. – beer brewing in ancient Babylon.

Traditional biotechnology

Crossbreeding plants or animals – selecting desirable genes from one generation to another

Microbial fermentation – making wine, yoghurt, cheeses and breads

Enzymes as food additives – e.g. papain from papaya to tenderize meat and clarify beverages

What is the difference?

Traditional breeding differs from genetic engineering:

• Traditional breeding is between the same or closely related species.

• No control and hundreds of genes are worked on at a time.

• Traditional breeding takes a long time.

Traditional vs. New biotech

Traditional examples? New examples?

Slight dilemna in tasting the cheese

Biotechnology around us

• Some examples in our daily lives?

• health, agriculture, aquaculture, environment, forestry, biomass, etc.