Biotech refers to technology that uses biology, including low-tech methods like grafting and adding yeast to drinks, and higher levels of technological intercession in agriculture. There are four subfields: green, blue, white, and red. White biotech uses biological organisms to produce or manipulate things beneficial to industry, including cleansing contaminated environments. Red biotech creates substances for medical use or to fight disease. Green biotech is the oldest and most contested, with genetic modification of plants being used extensively but opposed by some due to potential threats to biodiversity and health risks.
In its most general sense, biotech can be used to refer to any type of technology that uses biology to achieve its purpose. This includes “low-tech” methods such as grafting different plants together, adding yeast to a drink to ferment it into beer, or supplementing the soil with organisms to help manage pest problems. In a more specific sense, the term is usually used to refer to a higher level of technological intercession, especially in the field of agriculture.
There are four main subfields of biotechnology that most implementations fit into: green, blue, white, and red. Green biotechnology has to do with plants and growth, blue has to do with aquatic uses of biotechnology, white is used in industry, and red is used for medical purposes. While all four subfields have contributed to a number of valuable processes, green biotechnology is probably the most used, while blue is still relatively rare.
White biotechnology, also sometimes referred to as gray biotechnology, is primarily focused on using biological organisms to produce or manipulate things in ways that are beneficial to industry. Some bacteria can be used to treat metals or plastics, for example, in a way that may be more efficient or cost-effective than more traditional methods. Others may be used to actively produce a chemical or compound for use in the industrial process. One exciting use of white biotechnology is a way to cleanse a contaminated environment by releasing bacteria that help break down or degrade the unwanted chemical. Oil-consuming bacteria from oil spills are one example.
Red biotech is used to create substances for medical use or to directly help the body fight an illness or disease. The practice of genetically modifying yeast and bacteria to produce drugs is a widespread practice, often allowing for the creation of drugs that would otherwise be impossible to produce. Manipulating a patient’s genome to cure a disease is another relatively new use of red biotechnology.
Green biotechnology is easily the oldest use of biotechnology by humans, dating back to the earliest uses of selective breeding in plants, and in the modern age it is also the most contested area of biotech growth. Genetic modification of plants to produce desired effects – such as resistance to a certain chemical or pest or increased crop yield – is used extensively around the world on a range of crops, particularly staple food crops such as corn, rice and soybeans. Many proponents believe that genetically modified organisms (GMOs) have the potential to be far more environmentally friendly and help solve food crises around the world. Opponents believe that these transgenic food crops pose a threat to biodiversity and may also pose health risks.
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