Engineering Life: Miracles in Biotechnology - Introduction to Biotechnology-advanced

Biotechnology is the use of living organisms or their products to modify human health and the human environment. It involves techniques like genetic engineering and tissue culture.

Tissue Culture: A technique of maintaining and growing plant cells, tissues, or organs especially on an artificial nutrient medium in sterile conditions. The initial tissue used is called the $Explant$, which develops into an unorganized mass of cells called a $Callus$.

Genetic Engineering: The deliberate modification of the characteristics of an organism by manipulating its genetic material ($DNA$). This leads to the production of Genetically Modified Organisms ($GMOs$).

Stem Cells: Special types of cells that have the ability to divide and give rise to similar stem cells or differentiate into various specialized cell types. They are classified into $Embryonic$ stem cells and $Adult$ (Somatic) stem cells.

Applications in Agriculture: Includes the production of $Bt$ $Cotton$ (using genes from $Bacillus$ $thuringiensis$), bio-fertilizers like $Rhizobium$ and $Azotobacter$, and the development of high-yielding, disease-resistant crop varieties.

Applications in Health: Production of vaccines, antibiotics, and human hormones like insulin through recombinant $DNA$ technology.

Bio-fertilizers: These are substances containing living microorganisms which, when applied to seeds or soil, colonize the rhizosphere and promote growth by increasing the supply of primary nutrients to the host plant.