Annexure 1: What Are The Life Sciences All About

Standing between biology and chemistry, biochemistry is the most basic of the life sciences and may be defined as the study of the chemical basis of life. It is based upon the proposition that virtually all life can be understood as chemistry. Biochemists want to know what molecules living organisms are made of and what chemical changes occur in them. One particularly interesting aspect of biochemistry is the study of the storage, replication and expression of genetic information, i.e., how the instructions for making a living organism are encoded in DNA and how that code is deciphered. This field of study is now commonly referred to as molecular biology which forms the basis of genetic engineering. Genetic engineering is a process by which the genetic make-up of an organism can be changed to give it new properties. For example, the genes coding for human proteins can be inserted into bacteria and in turn these modified bacteria can be used to produce the protein in large quantity.

This is an example of what is now widely known as biotechnology. The term biotechnology was first used even before the twentieth century for such traditional activities as wine-making, brewing, and leavening of bread; but none of these would now be considered biotechnology in the modern sense. Today it refers to industrial production using living organisms, especially micro-organisms and processes sometimes described as biochemical engineering. Biotechnology results from integration of many branches of biology (microbiology, biochemistry, genetics and molecular biology) with chemical and systems engineering.

It has the potential to manufacture products more economically, in a less energy demanding manner, and more safely than traditional industry and solve hitherto unknown problems of medicine, production, pollution control and energy sources. What is new about modern biotechnology is not the principle of using various organisms but the techniques for doing so. Cell biology is concerned with the organisations of biological molecules into cells and with the functions of the various distinct structures that are found within cells. Physiology, cell biology and biochemistry all provide essential background for the pharmacologists. Pharmacology is the science of invention, testing and understanding the action of new therapeutic agents. There are, of course, many other interesting areas for study of the living world besides mankind. Life style and origins of both vertebrate and invertebrate animals. It has a long and distinguished history as a branch of science.

Apart from the natural interest that humans have in other animals that share our planet, zoology has contributed enormously to human welfare also. It is the basis of animal husbandry. Now zoologists are learning how to form the seas, rivers and lakes - activities known variously as fish farming, aquaculture or marine culture. Then there is plant science or botany,. This branch has undergone enormous developments in recent years as plant scientists have discovered ways, particularly of employing genetic engineering, to create new plants with higher yields or that can grow in unfavourable environments.

The world of the “very small”, i.e., viruses, bacteria and other university-cellular organisms, is the subject of study of the microbiologists. The study of microbiology is not only fascinating in its own right but is also of great practical importance because it can have both beneficial and harmful consequences for mankind. The harmful aspect is that many bacteria and viruses cause diseases, for example, the devastating aspects of HIV (the AIDS virus), a matter of international concern. The study of infectious diseases and organisms that cause them has led to the development of antibiotics and vaccines. The beneficial aspect of micro-organisms is their use in food production (e.g., for making wine and bread). Micro organisms can now be genetically engineered more easily than either plant or animal cells can. Increasing use of such modified organisms is being made for a variety of purposes – production of therapeutic proteins and clearing up oil spills in seas.