2. Introduction
The biotechnology industry uses bacterial cells for the production of biological
substances such as enzymes, proteins, biofuels etc.
Other area in which biotechnology uses bacteria is for vaccine development,
medicine extraction etc.
Also some bacterial genes are used for creating genetically modified organisms.
Bacteria have also being used in the food industry actively.
Bioremediation has been playing an active role since past years for use of bacteria
by biotechnology.
3. Bacteria as an factory for
biological substances
As we know bacteria can translate foreign genes.
By this method may products such as enzymes, proteins, biochemical products are
produced.
Humulin (Human Insulin) is produced by E.coli bacteria by inserting human insulin
gene into the bacteria.
Also erythropoietin is produced in the same way to treat Anaemia.
This works by removing a particular gene from bacteria and adding the desired
gene which will be expressed in form of product.
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5. Continued…
Also ethanol (Clostridium thermocellum),
acetone and some organic acids are produced
by bacterias in large fermenters.
Also bacteria are important for dietary
supplements and pharmaceuticals as they
provide ideal medium for testing.
E.coli and Saccharomyces cerevisiae are
important for production of many of the
compounds such as riboflavin, Vitamin K, D-
amino acids and antibiotic amoxicillin.
Bacteria have a great role in producing biofuels
such as ethanol that is produced by digesting
lignocellulose.
6. Bacteria for Genetically modified
organisms
Bacteria are mostly used as source of genes and vectors for genetically modified
plants.
One such example is of Bt cotton wherein bt gene of bacteria bacillus
thuringiensis is taken and inserted into a cotton plant with help of a Ti plasmid
of a bacterium to give cotton plant resistance against Cotton Bollworms.
The most commonly used bacterium as a vector is Agrobacterium tumefaciens.
7.
8. Role of Bacteria in food industry
The most common example of bacteria in
food industry is lactobacillus that
converts milk into curd.
Other vital role includes formation of
ethanol by fermentation to form various
beverages. The genera here includes
Lactobacillus, Leuconostoc, Pedi coccus
etc.
Yeast a kind of bacteria is used by bakers
to ferment their doughs that brings out
the softness in various bakery items.
Bacteria are also used to form organic
acids in pickles and vinegar.
9. Bioremediation
The use of bacteria to reduce/prevent pollutants by biotechnological methods is
known as bioremediation.
Bioremediation has been used to remove agricultural chemicals that leach from
soil into groundwater and the subsurface.
Certain toxic metals and oxides, such as selenium and arsenic compounds, can be
removed from water by bioremediation.
Several species (Pseudomonas Aeruginosa) of bacteria can carry out the
biotransformation of toxic mercury (Hg) into HgO which is nontoxic to humans.
10. Continued…
Bioremediation is also used to clean up
the regions in which oil leaching has been
detected.
Alcanivorax Borkumensis produce
surfactants that solubilize the oil, whereas
other bacteria degrade the oil into carbon
dioxide.
