Molecular b>Biotechnology
Prin iples and Applications of Recombinant DNA
SIXTH EDITION
An authoritative introduction to the fast-changing world of molecular biotechnology
In continuous publication since 1994 and now in its sixth edition,Molecular Biotechnology: Principles and Applications of Recombinant DNA has been effective in introducing this complex field to students for more than 25 years. This textbook covers essentially every aspect of the field of molecular biotechnology, which is constantly changing and adapting in light of new advances.
This edition includes the latest techniques in DNA sequencing and genetic engineering of microbial, plant, and animal genomes, including human genome editing, as well as updates across many areas, such as:
Molec lar Biotechnology features nearly 600 detailed figures and is an ideal textbook for undergraduate and graduate courses in introductory biotechnology, as well as courses dedicated to utilizing this technology, such as medical, agricultural, environmental, and industrial biotechnology applications.
About the Authors
Bernard R. Glick, PhD, is a distinguished professor emeritus at the University of Waterloo, Ontario, Canada, where he was the chair of biology from 2002 to 2008. He has authored more than 400 publications that have garnered over 54,000 citations.
Cheryl L. Patten, PhD, is a professor of microbiology in the Biology Department at the University of New Brunswick, Fredericton, Canada. She teaches courses in introductory biology, microbiology, and biotechnology.
Emergence of Molecular Biotechnology
Recombinant DNA Technology
Commercialization of Molecular Biotechnology
Concerns and Consequences
SUMMARY
REFERENCES
REVIEW QUESTIONS
Long before we knew that microorganisms existed or that genes were the units of inheritance, humans looked to the natural world to develop methods to increase food production, preserve food, and heal the sick. Our ancestors discovered that grains could be preserved through fermentation into beer, that storing horse saddles in a warm, damp corner of the stable resulted in the growth of a saddle mold that could heal infected saddle sores, that intentional exposure to a “contagion” could somehow provide protection from an infectious disease on subsequent exposures, and that plants and animals with enhanced production traits could be developed through crossbreeding. Following the discovery of the microscopic world in the 17th century, microorganisms have been employed in the development of numerous useful processes and products. Many of these are found in our households and backyards. Lactic acid bacteria are used to prepare yogurts and probiotics, insecticide‐producing bacteria are sprayed on many of the plants from which the vegetables in our refrigerator are harvested, nitrogen‐fixing bacteria are added in the soil used for cultivation of legumes, the enzymatic stain removers in laundry detergent come from a microorganism, and antibiotics that are derived from common soil microbes are used to treat infectious diseases. These are just a few examples of traditional biotechnologies that have improved our lives. Up to the early 1970s, however, biotechnology was not a well‐recognized scientific discipline, and research in this area was centered in departments of chemical engineering and occasionally in specialized microbiology programs.
In a broad sense, biotechnology is concerned with the manipulation of organisms to develop and manufacture useful products. The term “biotechnology” was first used in 1917 by a Hungarian engineer, Karl Ereky, to describe an integrated process for the large‐scale production of pigs by using sugar beets as the source of food. According to Ereky, biotechnology was “all lines of work by which products are produced from raw materials with the aid of living things.” This fairly precise definition was more or less ignored. For a number of years, biotechnology was used to describe two very different engineering disciplines. On one hand, it referred to industrial fermentation. On the other, it was used for the study of efficiency in the workplace—what is now called ergonomics. This ambiguity ended in 1961 when the Swedish microbiologist Carl Göran Hedén recommended that the title of a scientific journal dedicated to publishing research in the fields of applied microbiology and industrial fermentation be changed from theJournal of Microbiological and Biochemical Engineering and Technology toBiotechnology and Bioengineering. From that time on, biotechnology has been defined as the application of scientific and engineering principles to the processing of material by biological agents to provide goods and services. It is grounded on expertise in microbiology, genetics, biochemistry, immunology, cell biology, and chemical engineering.
Large‐scale production of commodities from natural organisms is often considerably less than optimal. Initial efforts to enhance yields of microbial products focused on creating variants (mutants) using chemical mutagens or radiation to induce changes in the genetic constitution of existing strains. The level of improvement that could be achieved in this way was usually limited biologically. If, for example, a bacterium was mutated to produce high levels of a compound, other metabolic functions often were impaired, thereby causing the bacterium's growth d
