The Biotechnology Cocktails

The Biotechnology Cocktails
Student Name
University Name
Student Notes

Biotechnology: Biotechnology is a cross-disciplinary field facilitating the manipulation biological
processes using technological means, for human welfare. This emerging field of science has a wide
range of applications in different areas including medical treatment processes, production of
pharmaceuticals, diagnostic tests, industrial processes, environment pollution reduction, animal
health, marine biology as well as in food processing and agriculture. Broadly, the field can be
divided into four types – medical, environmental and agricultural, marine as well as industrial
biotechnology. Recent researches have been combining the means of these four types of
biotechnological divisions to develop new methods and technologies which can be used for human
and environmental welfare. Thus, this essay will focus on such examples of researches
incorporating the usage of environmental and marine biotechnology. Environmental biotechnology
refers to usage of different biological organisms and methods to reduce and prevent soil, water and
air pollution. Marine biotechnology also referred to as the ‘blue biotechnology’ to the field of
biotechnology which mainly deals with the management, welfare as well as sustainable exploitation
of aquatic animals and plants for human welfare. The essay will also critically analyse the two
examples and highlight the significance of the potential impact of the two chosen types of
biotechnologies on the process of bioremediation as well as mention the possible improvements that
can be done to both the researches.
Environmental and Marine Biotechnology: The field of environmental biotechnology deals with
the management and reduction of waste production and pollution of the soil, air, and water. This
field often employs methods like biostimulation, bioremediation, and bioaugmentation to help
eliminate or destroy the wastes and harmful industrial by products. This field facilitates the
manipulation of microorganisms like bacteria, fungi and algae as well as production of transgenic
plants to eliminate the contaminants present in terrestrial and marine environments. Marine
biotechnology is the field of biotechnology which deals with the welfare, management and
sustainable exploitation of marine and aquatic creatures and plants for the welfare of humans. The
field also focuses on the betterment of the fauna and flora population in the marine ecosystem.
Increase in the marine pollution has resulted in the rapid degradation of the quality of marine
creatures and plants. The widespread pollution of oceans and seas has also hampered the human
health by hindering the process of sustainably exploiting the marine life for human welfare. The
main marine pollutants are oil spills from accidents of marine watercrafts or drilling rigs, ocean
acidification due to increased carbon dioxide present in the atmosphere caused by excessive global
warming, emptying of wastewaters from industries and sewage treatment plants into the oceans
causing increased eutrophication, increased presence of toxins and heavy metals from industrial
outlets and agricultural wastes, and increased accumulation of plastic debris. The marine
biotechnology often uses the rich diversity of the marine ecosystem, which facilitates the extraction
of vital biochemical compounds from aquatic animals and plants to help in the improvement of
human health. The chemical compounds are often used in the production of pharmaceuticals,
nutritive food items, as well as other products for human use. Thus the degrading quality of marine
life in the recent years is a growing concern for the humans as well as the overall condition of the
environment. The increased incidents of oils spills in the oceans have led to catastrophic effects on
the environment. Another common pollutant of oceans and seas are the increased accumulation of
heavy metals, toxic chemicals, industrial effluents and sewage wastes which cause increased
eutrophication and are often responsible for changing the pH and salinity of the oceans. The sources
include sewage water treatments plants, industries and factories, as well as waste water treatment
plants. Thus, employing the means of both the two fields of biotechnology- marine and
environmental, to facilitate the process of bioremediation can be very crucial for successfully
eliminating the contaminants and pollutants from the marine environment (Perpetuo, Souza &
Nascimento, 2011). Bioremediation can facilitate the increase in biosafety of not only marine