Biotechnology introduction  I  how Biotechnology works

 

  A brief Biotech Timeline 

Tens of thousands of years ago....	People wandered the earth, collecting and eating only what they found growing in nature.  By about 8,000 BC, however, the first farmers decided to stay in one place and grow certain plants as crops -- creating agriculture and civilization, in that order.
Thousands of years ago	People first learn to use bacteria to make new and different foods, and to employ yeast and fermentation processes to make wine, beer and leavened  Bread.
1700s	Naturalists begin to identify many kinds of hybrid plants – the offspring of Breeding between two varieties of plants.
1856	Gregor Mendel begins a meticulous study of specific characteristics he found in various plants which were passed to future plant generations.
1861	Louis Pasteur defines the role of micro-organisms and establishes the science  of microbiology.
1900	European botanists use Mendel’s Law to improve plant species.  This is the beginning of classic selection
1950	First regeneration of entire plants from an in vitro culture.
1953	James Watson and Francis Crick discover the double helix structure of Deoxyribonucleic acid, commonly known as DNA. Proteins are made up of  Strings of amino acids.  The number, order and kind of amino acids determine the property of that protein.  DNA holds the information necessary to order the amino acids correctly.  The DNA transmits this hereditary information from one generation to the next.  But it wasn’t until three decades later that  even larger strides occurred in the field.  Watson and Crick would later receive the Nobel Prize for their work.
1970s	The Green Revolution introduces hybrid seeds into food-short Third World Countries.
1973	Researchers develop the ability to isolate genes.  Specific genes code for specific proteins.
1980s	Scientists discover how to transfer pieces of genetic information from one organism to another, allowing the expression of desirable traits in the Recipient organism.  This is called genetic engineering, one process used in Biotechnology.  Using the technique of 'gene splicing' or 'recombinant DNA technology' (rDNA), scientists can add new genetic information to form a new protein which creates traits that protect plants from diseases and pests.
1982	The first commercial application of this technology is used to develop human insulin for diabetes treatment.
1983	The first transgenic plant: a tobacco plant resistant to an antibiotic.
1985	Genetically engineered plants resistant to insects, viruses, and bacteria are field tested for the first time.
1990	The first successful field trial of genetically engineered cotton plants (bt cotton) is conducted.
1991	Greenearth Biotechnologies Ltd. was founded
1992	Research Lab set up in Bangalore
1995	Greenearth Biotechnologies Ltd. Commercial Tissue culture lab commences production
2000	Greenearth Biotechnologies Ltd. achieves the highest production of banana tissue culture plants in South East Asian Region.

  Biotechnology introduction  I  how Biotechnology works