Biotechnology is a field of applied biology that involves the use of living things in engineering, technology, medicine, and other useful applications. Modem use of the term includes genetic engineering as well as cell and tissue culture technologies. The concept encompasses a wide range of procedures for modifying living organisms according to human purposes. The United Nations Convention on Biological Diversity defines biotechnology as "any technological application that uses biological systems, living organisms, or derivatives thereof, to make or modify products or processes for specific use".
Biotechnology draws on the pure biological sciences like genetics, microbiology, animal cell culture, molecular biology, biochemistry, embryology, cell biology, etc. In many instances, it is also dependent on knowledge and methods from outside the sphere of biology such as chemical engineering, bioprocess engineering, information technology, and biorobotics. Conversely, modern biological sciences including molecular ecology are intimately entwined and dependent on the methods developed through
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