Biotechnology: Principles & Processes — Real-world Applications — Summary | NoteTube

Recombinant insulin (Humulin): The human insulin gene is cloned into E. coli using rDNA technology; the bacterium acts as a bioreactor to produce insulin identical to human insulin — replaced animal-derived insulin, reducing allergic reactions and production costs
Hepatitis B vaccine: Surface antigen gene of Hepatitis B virus is expressed in yeast (Saccharomyces cerevisiae) using recombinant DNA — this recombinant subunit vaccine is safer than attenuated live virus vaccines
Gene therapy: Defective genes replaced or supplemented with functional copies using viral vectors $\frac{retroviral}{adenoviral}$ — used in ADA (adenosine deaminase) deficiency; first approved gene therapy case involved insertion of ADA gene into patient's lymphocytes
Bt crops (indirect application): The Bt toxin gene from Bacillus thuringiensis is inserted into crop plants using Ti plasmid from Agrobacterium — biolistics is used for cereals (monocots) since Ti plasmid works primarily in dicots
PCR in diagnostics: PCR detects pathogens (HIV, COVID-19, tuberculosis) from minuscule DNA samples; used in forensics (DNA fingerprinting), paternity testing, and archaeological DNA analysis
Transgenic animals: Human genes inserted into livestock to produce therapeutic proteins (biopharmaceuticals) in milk — e.g., transgenic sheep produce α-1-antitrypsin for emphysema treatment
ELISA vs. rDNA products: Recombinant proteins produced in bioreactors undergo downstream processing (purification + quality testing) before clinical use — e.g., recombinant erythropoietin (EPO) for anaemia
DNA fingerprinting (forensics): Gel electrophoresis of PCR-amplified STR fragments generates unique banding patterns used in criminal identification, mass disaster victim identification, and wildlife poaching cases
Golden Rice: Beta-carotene biosynthesis genes inserted into rice using rDNA — addresses Vitamin A deficiency in developing countries
CRISPR foundation: Gene editing (CRISPR-Cas9) is built on the same principles of sequence-specific DNA cleavage as restriction enzymes — understanding restriction biology is prerequisite to understanding CRISPR