Biotechnology

Biological technology is technology based on biology, particularly when used in agriculture, food science, and medicine. Biotechnology means any technological application that uses biological systems, living organisms, or derivatives thereof, to construct or change products or processes for specific use.

Biotechnology combines disciplines like genetics, molecular biology, biochemistry, embryology and cell biology, which are in turn allied to practical disciplines like chemical engineering, information technology, and robotics.Biotechnology can also be defined as the exploitation of organisms to do practical things and to provide useful products.

One characteristic of biotechnology is the directed use of organisms for the manufacture of organic products (examples include beer and milk products). For another example, naturally present bacteria are utilized by the mining industry in bioleaching. Biotechnology is also used to recycle, treat waste, clean up sites infected by industrial activities (bioremediation), and produce biological weapons.