Biotechnology gives hope against environmental pollution
Biotechnology plays a very important role in seeking answers to these questions. Biotechnology is everywhere and it’s actually a big part of our lives. It provides breakthrough technologies in many areas such as fighting disease, reducing our environmental footprint, reducing hunger and making useful products. In its simplest form, biotechnology uses cellular and biomolecular processes and forces them to work for us.
Biotechnology is not easy. Because the secrets of nature’s tools are not easily solved. Yet every day in almost every country in the world, scientists are deciphering the language of nature a little more.
Science continues in an astonishing and fascinating way. Today, there are hundreds of biotech healthcare products and vaccines available to patients for many diseases.
Millions of farmers around the world are applying agricultural biotechnology to increase yields, prevent pest and pest damage, and reduce the environmental impact of farming.
Biorefineries are being built to produce biofuels and chemicals from renewable biomass that can help reduce greenhouse gas emissions and to test and refine technologies.
In fact, most of us are unaware that humans have been using biotechnology for literally thousands of years; beer brewing, yoghurt and cheese production, and bread-making are just a few examples.
These early forms of biotechnology often relied on fermentation, which took advantage of yeasts and other microorganisms to increase our food supply.
Today, biotechnology continues to improve the way we live and helps us do it more responsibly. In the last 50 years, there have been revolutionary developments with the following applications:
* using bacteria and yeasts as nature’s microscopic workers;
* exploitation of genetic markers;
* more sophisticated, systematic use of enzyme-based manufacturing processes.
The purpose of scientists is to develop a variety of practically unlimited biotechnology products that help us live longer and healthier lives, have a more abundant and sustainable food supply, use safer and more efficient industrial production, and reduce our greenhouse gas footprint.
The near future brings with it many difficulties. Globally, the population is projected to increase by 38% by 2050, to reach 9.7 billion by 2050, with the population of Africa doubling over the same period.
Especially in developed countries, the population is ageing, so it becomes difficult to develop health conditions that can combat age-related degenerative diseases. This situation threatens economic stability and social infrastructure.
In this context, we are faced with limited fossil fuel resources, insufficient arable land for food production, scarcity of clean water, the dizzying impact of climate change, and crises that constantly threaten our health and nutrition.
Recent advances in biotechnology are developing promising processes that can help us prepare for and overcome these challenges today. For example, some biotech drugs have helped reduce the negative effects of multiple sclerosis and cystic fibrosis and have greatly improved the quality of life for those who suffer from them.
For a variety of diseases, including many cancers and hereditary conditions, important new diagnostic tools are developed that leverage genetic testing and other biomarkers, helping doctors administer the right drugs in the right doses and determine whether a patient will respond to a drug.
To address the problems of climate change and resource scarcity, biotechnology helps protect the environment by creating more sustainable resources. New production processes leveraging biotechnology reduce waste, minimize water use, prevent pollution from harmful chemicals and reduce greenhouse gas formation.
For example, the use of biofuels can reduce greenhouse gas emissions by 52% or more, while lowering the temperature to do the laundry could potentially save $4.1 billion annually.
The development of new biofuels and other renewable fuels helps increase sustainable energy while reducing reliance on oil, and by developing biodegradable plastics, it tries to avoid plastics being thrown into the environment.
Agricultural applications of biotechnology have helped create a more sustainable food supply by increasing crop yields, reducing the environmental impact of agriculture, and increasing resistance to destructive pests.
We have examined only a small part of the many potential uses and benefits of biotechnology. Every day, scientists are discovering new ways to improve our quality of life using biotechnology applications.
Doctors leverage working genetic information to develop promising new treatments for cancer, including therapeutic vaccines, and — through personalized medicine — to help the right patients get the right treatment at the right time.
Great progress has been made in improving our food supply and reducing the environmental footprint of our farms. Thanks to biotech innovations, scientists are in the process of developing salt-tolerant and drought-tolerant crops and opportunities to take advantage of still unproductive land. New practices will also increase the nutritional value of our food, the health of our forests and the sustainability of livestock production.
Biotechnology is also paving the way for the 21st-century industrial revolution, moving the economy from a petrochemical-based economy to a greener and cleaner technology-driven, bioprocessor-based economy.
The last 50 years have seen a boom in the biotech industry. A comprehensive education in science and mathematics and the training of highly skilled people is vital for countries to save their future. Consistent training of these skilled people is critical to ensure that we fully understand the potential of biotechnology and that the cutting-edge biotechnology applications we envision today become the reality of tomorrow.
By investing in biotechnology companies; We can carry humanity to the future with a clean world by raising an educated workforce with high skills in science, mathematics and engineering, and giving priority to biotechnology research.
There is now a great awareness of the effects of pollution and public pressure has affected both industries and governments. Environmental pollution is no longer a problem to be ignored. There is an intense need to replace traditional industrial processes, which are the largest sources of pollution, with those that are less polluting or not. This transition poses a great challenge for us and for future generations. Along with the pollution created by current human activities and the treatment of accumulated waste from our industrial history is a big challenge ahead of us. But at least now we are aware of the problem and we are preparing various solutions to solve these problems. Transition to a truly sustainable economy will be possible with the implementation of the solutions that will solve the pollution problem along with the transition to environmentally sensitive industrial processes. One of the most promising solutions developed against industrial pollution includes enzymes.
Enzymes are molecules in protein structure that catalyze biochemical reactions in cells. Enzymes, which have very important metabolic functions in cells, have entered daily and economic life to be used for various purposes. Enzymes used in almost every field of industry are generally obtained from microorganisms. The reason for this is that enzymes originating from microorganisms have very high catalytic activities compared to enzymes of plant or animal origin, do not form unwanted by-products, are more stable and cheaper, and can be obtained in large quantities. These microorganisms were selected not only for their ability to produce enzymes but also for their non-toxic and non-pathogenicity. Many enzymes used in industry today are of microbial origin.
The use of enzymes in industrial processes is often linked to reduced energy consumption as well as chemicals and is therefore beneficial for the environment. Enzymes catalyze specific reactions and mostly act under moderate conditions (temperature, pH, solvents and ionic strength). However, some enzymes work in extreme conditions. Extremophilic microorganisms have adapted to live in the high temperatures of volcanoes, low temperatures of the poles, very low or very high pH values (pH 0–3 or pH 10–12) or very high salt concentrations (5–30%). In this way, microorganisms living in different ecological conditions can be classified as thermophilic, acidophilic, alkaliphilic and halophilic microorganisms. Enzymes obtained from extreme microorganisms living in these areas have been used intensively in the industrial field because they are resistant to extreme conditions. Therefore, enzymes have become promising tools for the selective removal of pollutants from industrial wastes.
Enzymes work with high specificity and this specificity prevents unwanted side reactions. Otherwise, the consumption of reactants would increase and the process cost would increase accordingly. This specificity provides a great advantage over traditional chemical treatment processes.
With the gradual development of enzyme technology, researches on industrial enzymes have gained more importance due to the diversity of usage areas and the high economic value of enzymes. Enzyme production, especially by using recombinant DNA technology, has reached great dimensions and its use has become increasingly widespread. Policymakers should contribute greatly to the construction of a sustainable economy by supporting these researches. However, the most important driving force that will move politicians to action is public vote pressure. For this reason, everyone who feels responsible for our world, especially scientists, environmentalists and educators, should take action and make an effort to raise awareness of the public on this issue.