Interdisciplinary Dependency Of Biotechnology

Biotechnology is dependent on many disciplines and techniques for accumulation of data, its organization and analysis. Some of these disciplines are mentioned below:

Biological Engineering

Biological Engineering is an interdisciplinary area focusing on the application of engineering principles to analyse biological systems and solve problems relating to biological systems with human-designed machines, structures, processes and instrumentation.

 In many cases, currently available knowledge is inadequate to support the engineering design of biological processes. Hence, greater fundamental knowledge of biology and its potential applications remain as a focus of biological engineering.

Examples of bioengineering include:

· Artificial hips, knees and other joints.

· Ultrasound, MRI and other medical imaging techniques.

· Using engineered organisms for chemical and pharmaceutical manufacturing.

Biomimetics

Biomimetics, also known as biomimicry, is the usage and implementation of concepts and principles from nature to create new materials, devices and systems.

This adaptation of methods and systems found in nature into man made products is desirable, because living organisms have evolved well-adapted structures and materials over geological time through natural selection. Moreover, human beings have looked at nature for answers to problems throughout our existence. Nature has solved engineering problems such as self-healing abilities, environmental exposure tolerance and resistance, harnessing solar energy, etc.

A simple example of biomimetics is inspiration to develop Velcro tape on lines of hooks on bur fruits

Bionics

Bionics can mean different things to different people. It started as a term for the application of principles of biology to engineering. Now it is used more to describe a method to engineer organs that can replace diseased or non-functional human organs. In future, it could also be a way to design machines that can mimic biological behaviour. Thus, the term bionics is related to biomimetics. Bionics is distinct from bioengineering (or biotechnology), which is based on the use of actual living organisms.

Under the traditional method, well-fitting limbs such as wooden leg or a glass eye was made for persons who had lost legs or eyes. Bionic technology does not stop at making well-fitting prostheses. The term ‘bio’ in the word, ‘bionic’ refers to artificial eye or limbs such as legs or arms which can carry out functions like the normal limbs.

Example of bionic eye

Bionic eye is an artificial device that has been developed to restore vision. The device includes, among other things, a small video camera, a transmitter mounted on a pair of glasses and an implant in the brain which works as a wireless link between the transmitter and the brain.

This new surgically implanted assistive device provides an option for patients who have lost their sight, for which there are no approved treatments.

Bioinformatics

The recent flood of data from biology and the need for its organization has given rise to a new field namely, bioinformatics, which combines the elements of Biology and Computer Science. Think about the data generated by more than three billion nitrogen pairs in human body which is responsible for gene sequences in an individual!

Bioinformatics begins with conceptualizing biological processes and systems, and then applying ‘informatics’ techniques (derived from disciplines such as Applied Mathematics, Computer Science and Statistics) to understand and organise the information associated with these processes and systems, on a large-scale