Biotechnology vs. Bioenterprise: Side-by-Side Comparison

Definition

In many cases, biotech is the result of bioenterprise’s ongoing research of a naturally-evolved lifeform (e.g., cellular structure and processes). This is what is meant by the phrase “nature’s toolbox.” There is also a significant amount of overlap with the fields of molecular genetics, cell biology, and biochemistry.

Technologists in this field draw upon the countless resources provided to us by the natural world. Coal, steam, and early electrical power grids are all nascent versions of bioenterprise. In the modern day, natural gas, oil, and hydroelectric facilities power infrastructures that are critical to human life.

Applications

First, there are myriad applications in healthcare and virology fields. Second, biotechnology is at the forefront of changes in how efficient our energy systems can be. Third, the agricultural sectors stand to benefit from savvier and more environmentally-conscious practices that use improved nutrition profiles to increase yield and lower the amount of runoff produced by large farming operations.

Biotech also can help reduce the rates of infectious disease by developing better research techniques, potentially saving the lives of millions of children in poverty-stricken countries.

Additionally, scientific practices modeled on cellular biology tailor their treatments to individuals to help maximize the efficacy of medicine, creating more precise and incisive tools for the detection of disease. Other ways that biotechnology aids in the steady advancement of more sustainable living practice are by implementing improved standards for chemical manufacturing and changing the work flow in labs and facilities to reduce operations costs and reliance on petrochemicals.

Further projects undertaken by biotech firms interested in textiles and cleaning include researching a low-heat means of laundering clothes. This could save Americans a projected $4.1 billion annually. And on farms, those improved water pressure and pumping systems that utilize biotechnological environment monitoring systems to automate irrigation could greatly improve a crop’s yield.

Bioenterprises leverage emergent, cutting-edge academic research to advance the number of possible applications of whatever the technology may be. To date, much of America’s contribution to the field of biotech has come from academic institutions with creative talent and the powers of invention.

Bioentrepreneurship also can help to provide and build the framework onto which biotech industries can share their inventions with the world. These companies facilitate the introduction of more environmentally-stable farming practices to the mainstream, in addition to improving crop insect resistance by careful study of the crop’s genetics. Other firms might use more common biological processes (e.g., fermentation or harnessing biocatalysts like yeast, enzymes, and fungi) to become tiny medicine-manufacturing plants. In the pharmaceutical industry, microorganisms are used to engineer medications without the use of any synthetic materials.

In agriculture, bioenterprise can strive to augment the genetic structure of certain crops to make them less susceptible to pest- and herbicides, if the environment demands their use. Produce can also be engineered to be hardier, weathering a wider spectrum of weather and climate.

For the processing and production of foodstuffs, techniques like fermentation result in substances which are used as processing preservatives and additives. Cheese, yogurt, sauerkraut, and buttermilk are all the results of bioenterprise.

In the realm of power and transportation, the world’s most common biofuel- ethanol- can be used for electricity generation. As far as consumer goods are concerned, bioenterprise offers many plant-based home goods, clothing, and cleaning alternatives.

Subfields

• As a molecular geneticist, professionals study the structure, form, and function of genes and the genetic code at the molecular level.
• In the area of expertise known as cell biology, researchers dig deep into the wonders and mysteries of the cell, the major building blocks of complex organisms.
• Biochemistry is concerned with the physicochemical substances and processes that are ongoing in living organisms.
• Computational biology, also called bioinformatics, looks at biological problems from a computing perspective. Computational biologists occupy critical positions in studies on functional genomics and even the pharmaceutical industry, for which its data is used to create solutions.
• The engineering of genetic cures and antibiotic design is called red biotechnology.
• The applications for the professional marine and aquatics sectors have been termed blue biotechnology.
• The genetic modification and designing of transgenic plants to grow under difficult conditions is called green biotechnology.
• Grey biotechnology is what happens when bioentrepreneurial interest results in the improvement of industrial machinations, such as in the creation of an organism that secretes an enzyme which acts as a lubricant, thereby doing away with the need for a petrochemical fuel.

• In biostatistics, experts with an MS or PhD statistically analyze data to better design experiments and identify trends in biotechnological sets.
• The specialization of enterprise and regulatory affairs comprises ethics, policy, the political climate, regulations, and legal considerations when running a bioenterprise.
• Bioentrepreneurship is the administration of the business side of things.
• The healthcare subfield of bioenterprise deals with using biotechnology to invent and produce new pharmaceuticals.

Educational Preparation and Career Outlook

Programs of this kind offer biotechnology and bioenterprise students with what Arizona State University calls a transdisciplinary approach—one that combines practical regulatory and infrastructural education with biotechnological research. Entrepreneurial skills dovetail with a detailed survey of market biotech innovations, big problems facing the scientific and retail sectors, and some of the solutions being suggested in the real world.

To meet science requirements, these students must be well-versed in biomolecular systems and biostatistics, with practical coursework in bioentrepreneurship and finance to bolster a career in biotech.

Some roles in the biotech field include microbiologists, laboratory researchers, patent agents, regulatory affairs managers, and lab technicians or researchers. Qualified biotechnologists can find jobs on Science Careers, Indeed, LinkedIn, and BioSpace.

pon the satisfactory completion of a bioenterprise degree program, graduates can expect to work in various roles, all of which relate heavily to biotechnological advancements.

A perusal of job listings indicates that students who plan on making a career of bioenterprise should pursue a graduate degree to advance beyond an entry-level position. A master of science or PhD in biotech could give you the credentials you need to become a head researcher, quality assurance engineer, cell biologist, or bioentrepreneur. Recipients of a bioenterprise or bioentrepreneur degree can search listings on BioSpace, LinkedIn, Science Careers, and Indeed.