What Biotechnology Applications Are Used In Agriculture?
What do genetically modified crops, engineered vaccines, and bioremediation have in common? Biotechnology! The field of biotechnology includes many applications to improve the quality of life, from agriculture to manufacturing to medicine and more. In this article, we’ll explore some of the applications of biotechnology used in agriculture to help you understand how it might be used in your business or industry. Let’s get started!
Identifying Plants
One of biotechnology’s biggest applications in agriculture is with crops themselves. Much like in human medicine, plant-based biotechnologies can be used to identify, diagnose and treat plant diseases. By taking a sample from a diseased plant, scientists can run DNA tests on it to determine what that disease is and how best to treat it. In addition, researchers are also studying whether genetically modifying crops is an effective way to produce higher crop yields. If there's anything science has proven over time, it's that we can do almost anything we set our minds to -- including helping plants live longer!
Managing Diseases
There are biotechnological applications in agriculture that help farmers grow crops in an environmentally friendly way. With CRISPR-Cas9, researchers have found a way to manipulate a plant’s genome to change its physical characteristics, like flower size or seed shape. This could make it easier for plants to resist pests and disease, so they can grow without pesticides—an important application for organic agriculture. Planting genetically modified crops may also decrease crop damage from climate change: scientists are looking into whether changing when and where you plant can reduce yield loss due to flooding or drought.
Preventing Diseases
The first biotechnology application used in agriculture is for disease prevention. Antibiotics, which can kill bacteria and fungi, have been widely used since the 1940s to treat diseases that harm crop production. When an antibiotic is applied to a plant, it will bind to its DNA and prevent new disease from forming before it can start spreading through a field or a grove. Antibiotics are also used in conjunction with genetic engineering as they provide both long-term prevention and immediate treatment of diseases and pests. For example, when viruses like citrus greening threaten crops like oranges, you can use genetic engineering to produce virus-resistant trees but then spray them with antibiotics as additional protection against disease.
Improving Crop Yields
One of biotechnology’s greatest applications in agriculture is in crop production. The Food and Agriculture Organization of the United Nations estimates that at least 10 percent of calories consumed worldwide come from genetically modified crops, but those numbers are probably much higher when you account for crops grown specifically for livestock. For example, Golden Rice is a genetically modified crop that boosts vitamin A levels to combat malnutrition and blindness in Southeast Asia and Sub-Saharan Africa. Scientists are also working on creating super-crops that can sustain drought or growing conditions with less water. It’s also worth noting that crops like cotton are already produced almost entirely through biotechnology—scientists have been manipulating plant genomes for thousands of years through selective breeding. Now, researchers can enhance crops by adding genes from other species altogether.
Protecting Crops
Crops are a major contributor to global food security. It’s estimated that one in every three bites of food you take comes from crops—think wheat, rice, soybeans, and corn. This means crop production is a major application of biotechnology. Crops are modified in multiple ways for greater yields and increased resistance to pests, diseases, and other stresses—from genetic engineering to traditional breeding methods like artificial selection or hybridization. Traditional plant breeding is used by farmers worldwide because it’s cost-effective and can have high success rates with many crops; however, it doesn’t always provide quick results or improved traits fast enough to keep up with shifting climates or a growing population. It also tends to be more prone to allergens than genetic engineering.
Breeding Crops
The applications of biotechnology in crop production is mainly used to increase yields and crop productivity. For example, hybrid crops produced through biotechnology have made a significant impact on agriculture. Modern agriculture relies heavily on pesticides to protect crops from harmful insects, mites, bacteria, and fungi. The use of biotechnological methods can reduce the dependence on pesticides and allow farmers to better manage pests and increase crop productivity. Specific biotechnological applications in crop production include pest management, herbicide tolerance for weed control, disease resistance for insect control or resistance against other plant diseases such as Fusarium and Phytophthora species for increased survival after infection and/or reduction of yield loss following infection respectively.
Producing Biofuels
Biofuels are a subset of bioenergy and are liquid transportation fuels produced by processing biomass. They can be made from any of several feedstocks, including plants and animal fats. Bioethanol is an alcohol made by fermentation of plant material, used as a fuel additive, or in specially designed engines. Biodiesel is an alternative to fossil diesel (petrodiesel) that can be used in standard diesel engines when mixed with mineral oil as well as in its pure form.
Treating Wastewater
Wastewater is not a synonym for sewage. The term typically refers to water that has been used in a commercial, institutional, or industrial setting and has been released into public waterways. Wastewater treatment is important because it’s often laden with dangerous chemicals, heavy metals, and contaminants that have to be removed before it can be returned to its source. While various ways of treating wastewater are used all over the world, two major systems predominate: conventional treatment and more advanced stabilization ponds known as biosolids management systems. Stabilization ponds involve removing sludge from wastewater by using microorganisms that are encouraged to grow in lagoons containing the treated wastewater.
Removing Pollutants from Soil
Several companies are working on genetically engineered microbes for soil remediation. For example, a system from Origin Oil uses naturally occurring microbes to generate biofuel and clean up oil spills. The process works by breaking down oil in soil and water, producing biocrude that can be refined into biodiesel or used as part of an enhanced-oil-recovery program. The company is also exploring engineered microbes that can degrade pollutants from industrial processes like manufacturing, mining, drilling, and refining. Several other firms are applying genetic engineering to agriculture by developing genetically modified organisms that produce more nutritious food or grow better in poor soil.
