Biotechnology, a rare blend of Bio and Engineering sciences

Sakshi Education

By,
Dr. D. Sailaja

B Tech Biotechnology is an unique course with multitudinal avenues. It is a rare blend of bio and engineering sciences. It mainly deals with exploration of bioresources like plants, animals, microbes, and environmental resources and develop useful products to the society. Wide ranges of bioderived products that can be developed include Biofertilisers Biopesticides, Biofuels, Biopharmaceuticals vaccines Enzymes Health care products, Biocosmetics and so on.

The course mainly deals with culturing/growing of Biological systems/cells/their derivatives in large-scale bioreactors to get above-mentioned products using bioprocess technology. Hence knowledge about biological systems and their cultures methods including controlling of temperature, pressure, oxygen content, pH, volume of the medium etc ., and methods of getting pure products of marketable value.

Biotechnology finds its application in various industries like
Bioprocess industries involving production of enzymes, proteins, vaccines etc., Pharmaceutical, herbal based industries, Agribased industries involving production of transgenics, biofertilizers, biopesticides, tissue culture plants Energy Biofuels, Environment/waste management Food processing industries Human health diagnostics, veterinary, Drugs/analytical Bioinfomatics/ Immunnoinformatics/clinical data management /drug designing/protein modelling and so on.

B.Tech Biotecnology students can opt for any of the multi directional avenues available after completing their B.Tech

These include

Biotech industries - AG biotech Sri Biotech Gayathry Biotech, Transdyne Biotech etc.
Pharma industries - Dr. Reddys, Aurobindo, Ranbaxy, NATCO Pharma
Vaccine industries - Shantha Biotech, Bharath biotech.
Agri industries - Nuziveedu seeds, Sri Biotech.
Software industries - TCS, Infosys, Reliance, Cognizant, Google, Wipro.
Health & Diagnostics - Biological E ltd, Indian immunologicals, Serum institute of India.

Higher studies - in leading foreign universities like University of Illinois, Texas, New York State university, University of Mary land etc., Indian Institutes like IITS, NITS, HCU

One can pursue folllowing courses in Biotechnology

BSc. in Biotechnology
BTech in Biotechnology
Five year Integrated MTech in Biotechnology in IIT Delhi & kharagpur through IIT-JEE

The Jawaharlal Nehru University, New Delhi, AIIMS, Jadavpur University, Kolkata and Anna University also offers integrated M.Tech course

Postgraduate (MSc.) courses in Biotechnology
Ph. D in Biotechnology
M.Sc. (Agriculture) Biotechnology
M.V.Sc. (Animal) Biotechnology
M.Tech. Biotechnology
M.Sc. / M.V.Sc.in Veterinary Biotechnology
M.Sc. (Marine) Biotechnology
M.Tech.in Biomedical Engineering / Biotechnology
B Tech Industrial Biotechnology from VIT & Anna University

Entrance Tests:

IIT JEE: Five year Integrated MTech in Biotechnology in IIT Delhi & kharagpur through IIT-JEE
JNU – Combined Biotechnology Entrance Examination: M.Sc. (Biotechnology), M.Sc. Agri./M.V.Sc(Biotechnology) & M.Tech (Biotechnology)
GATE: M Tech Biotechnology in IITs

(The author is Professor &Head, Dept of Biotechnology, GRIT, Hyderabad)

Published date : 05 Dec 2011 03:55PM