*** Department of Biological Sciences -- Illinois State University ***

Why Biotechnology?   Biotechnology is an exciting, cutting edge scientific discipline that first emerged in the late 1970's as a result of advances in microbiology, biochemistry, genetics, virology, immunology, and cell biology.  This is a highly interdisciplinary area where a number of important subdisciplines in biology converge.  The power of biotechnology is that it allows the tremendous genetic diversity of living organisms to be utilized in the interest of humans.  The application of biotechnology has already helped maximize agricultural efficiency, animal productivity, the development of therapeutics, diagnostic reagents, and the management of hazardous wastes.  For example, molecular techniques are already being widely used to detect and identify diseases and to establish guilt or innocence. 

    Financial investment from private sources currently drives much of the research and development in the field of biotechnology.  This investment is based on the expectation of eventual financial gain as useful products enter the marketplace.  In the past two decades, this investment has caused biotechnology to grow exponentially, as its application to areas such as pharmaceuticals, medicine, food industry, agriculture, and waste management has been recognized.  Currently, there are more than 3,500 biotechnology companies in the world!

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