Advantages of rDNA-T

Application of genetic engineering

Medical applications Industrial applications: Environmental applications: Agricultural applications: Fundamental understanding of biological processes

Medical applications
Monoclonal antibodies produced by hybridoma technology used for disease diagnosis, eg., veneral disease, hepatitis B and other viral diseases, cancer, etc DNA probes used for disease diagnosis: kalaazar, malaria etc Recombinant vaccines: cleaner, safer: hepatitis B virus, E. coli vaccines, rabies etc Valuable drugs like insulin, interferon, growth hormones Gene therapy to cure genetic diseases, eg., huntinton disease, cystic fibrosis, chorea etc. Babes of specified sex: artificial insemination with X or Y carrying sperm prepared by sperm separation techniques. (May be unfair to disturb sex ratio.) Identification of parents/criminals using DNA fingerprinting. Very accurate and reliable from even blood, serum, semen stains, hair roots etc. Test tube bebies in human. IVF techniques for couples suffering from infertility.

Industrial
Production of useful compounds like ethanol, lactic acid, glycerine, citri acid, gluconic acid, acetone etc. Produced by bacteria from less useful/waste substrates Production of antibiotics eg penicillin, strptomycin, erythromycin, mitomycin, cycloheximide etc. Produced by fung, actinomycetes as secondary metabolites. Transformation of less useful and cheaper compounds into more useful and valuable ones eg stroid hormones from sterols, sorbose from sorbitol. Engineered enzymes immobilized on a solid substratum.

Production of enzymes. Eg amylase, protease, lipase. From fungi, bacteria for use in detergent, textile, leather, dairy industries and in medicine
Fuel, mainly, ethanol, sometimes biogas production from cheaper, less useful and abundant substrates eg., sugarcane bagasse, wood etc. Biogas from cowdong. Mineral extraction through leacihing from low grade ores. Eg, uranium, copper. Protein, enzyme engineering to change the primary structure to make more efficient, substrate specificity. Eg. T4 lysozyme, trypsin, subtilisin, lactate dehydrogenase etc

Environmental
Efficient sewage treatment, deodorization of human excreta. Degradation of petroleum and management of oil spillages. Detoxification of wastes and industrial effluents. Bio-control of plant diseases and insect pests by using viruses, bacteria, amoeba, fungi etc.

Agricultural applications:
Hormone induced super-ovulation and/or embryo spilliting in farm animals. Production of transgenic animals for increased milk, growth rate, resistance to disease, production of some valuable metabolites in blood, urine, milk etc. N2 fixation, transgenic plants and animals: pest resistant, drought resistant, temperature (hot/cold) resistant, high productivity Embryo culture to rescue otherwise inviable hybrids, to recover haploid plants from interspecific hybrids, micropropagation of orchids etc. Rapid clonal multiplication through meristem culture. Eg, for many fruit or forest tree such as teak. High rate of multiplication, conventional rates are very low.

Fundamental understanding
of biological processes Biochemical pathways Basic science research

Disadvantages: potential biohazards

Acquisition of harmful characters in hosts
penR gene in Streptococci Clostridial toxins in E. coli

Escape of chimric microorganisms:

drainage, glasswares, personnels

Interference of evolutionary processes:

natural barrier breakdown

Bio-warfare: terror Sometimes unnecessary jobs:

some other lesser dangerous techniques