BIO-INFORMATICS

Bioinformatics is the application of statistics and computer science to the field of molecular biology.

The term bioinformatics was coined by Paulien Hogeweg in 1979 for the study of informatic processes in biotic systems. Its primary use since at least the late 1980s has been in genomics and genetics, particularly in those areas of genomics involving large-scale DNA sequencing.

Bioinformatics now entails the creation and advancement of databases, algorithms, computational and statistical techniques and theory to solve formal and practical problems arising from the management and analysis of biological data.

Over the past few decades rapid developments in genomic and other molecular research technologies and developments in information technologies have combined to produce a tremendous amount of information related to molecular biology. It is the name given to these mathematical and computing approaches used to glean understanding of biological processes.

Common activities in bioinformatics include mapping and analyzing DNA and protein sequences, aligning different DNA and protein sequences to compare them and creating and viewing 3-D models of protein structures.

The primary goal of bioinformatics is to increase the understanding of biological processes. What sets it apart from other approaches, however, is its focus on developing and applying computationally intensive techniques (e.g., pattern recognition, data mining, machine learning algorithms, and visualization) to achieve this goal. Major research efforts in the field include sequence alignment, gene finding, genome assembly, drug design, drug discovery, protein structure alignment, protein structure prediction, prediction of gene expression and protein-protein interactions, genome-wide association studies and the modeling of evolution.

EVOLUATIONARY BIOLOGY

Evolutionary biology is the study of the origin and descent of species, as well as their change over time. Informatics has assisted evolutionary biologists in several key ways; it has enabled researchers to:

* trace the evolution of a large number of organisms by measuring changes in their DNA, rather than through physical taxonomy or physiological observations alone,
* more recently, compare entire genomes, which permits the study of more complex evolutionary events, such as gene duplication, horizontal gene transfer, and the prediction of factors important in bacterial speciation,
* build complex computational models of populations to predict the outcome of the system over time
* track and share information on an increasingly large number of species and organisms

Future work endeavours to reconstruct the now more complex tree of life.The area of research within computer science that uses genetic algorithms is sometimes confused with computational evolutionary biology, but the two areas are not necessarily related.

SCOPE IN BIO-INFORMATICS IN INDIA

Bioinformatics career in is increasingly attracting the youngsters in India today. The scope of bioinformatics is in areas like database design and maintenance, sequence assembly, proteomics, clinical pharmacologist, sequence analysis, informatics developer and bio-analytics. Excellent job opportunities are available in Biotech and Pharmaceutical companies in India. Indian companies like Wipro, Reliance, Satyam, TCS and companies like Accelrys and IBM Life Sciences Pubgene, Silicon Genetics and Tessella offer good employments to the bioinformatics candidates. Due to increasing demand of bioinformatics candidates, a career in bioinformatics offer good prospects

CARRER IN BIO-INFORMATICS

The career prospects in the field has been steadily increasing with more and more use of information technology in the field of molecular biology. Job prospects are in all sectors of biotechnology, pharmaceutical and biomedical sciences, in research institutions, hospital and industry. Some of the specific career areas that fall within the scope of bioinformatics include Sequence assembly, Database design and maintenance, Sequence analysis, Proteomics (the study of protein, particularly their structures and functions), Pharmacogenomics, Pharma-cology, Clinical pharmacologist, Informatics developer, Computational chemist, Bio-analytics and Analytics etc.

BIO-TECHNOLOGY

Biotechnology is a field of applied biology that involves the use of living things in engineering, technology, medicine, and other useful applications. Modern use similar term includes genetic engineering as well as cell- and tissue culture technologies. The concept encompasses a wide range of procedures (and history) for modifying living organisms according to human purposes - going back to domestication of animals, cultivation of plants, and "improvements" to these through breeding programs that employ artificial selection and hybridization. By comparison to biotechnology, bioengineering is generally thought of as a related field with its emphasis more on higher systems approaches (not necessarily altering or using biological materials directly) for interfacing with and utilizing living things. 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 (genetics, microbiology, animal cell culture, molecular biology, biochemistry, embryology, cell biology) and in many instances is also dependent on knowledge and methods from outside the sphere of biology (chemical engineering, bioprocess engineering, information technology, biorobotics). Conversely, modern biological sciences (including even concepts such as molecular ecology) are intimately entwined and dependent on the methods developed through biotechnology and what is commonly thought of as the life sciences industry.

Applications

"A rose plant that began as cells grown in a tissue culture"

Biotechnology has applications in four major industrial areas, including 1.health care (medical), 2.crop production and agriculture, 3.non food (industrial) uses of crops and other products (e.g. biodegradable plastics, vegetable oil, biofuels), and 4.environmental uses.

For example, one application of biotechnology is the directed use of organisms for the manufacture of organic products (examples include beer and milk products). Another example is using naturally present bacteria by the mining industry in bioleaching. Biotechnology is also used to recycle, treat waste, clean up sites contaminated by industrial activities (bioremediation), and also to produce biological weapons.

A series of derived terms have been coined to identify several branches of biotechnology, for example:

* Bioinformatics is an interdisciplinary field which addresses biological problems using computational techniques, and makes the rapid organization and analysis of biological data possible. The field may also be referred to as computational biology, and can be defined as, "conceptualizing biology in terms of molecules and then applying informatics techniques to understand and organize the information associated with these molecules, on a large scale." Bioinformatics plays a key role in various areas, such as functional genomics, structural genomics, and proteomics, and forms a key component in the biotechnology and pharmaceutical sector.

* Blue biotechnology is a term that has been used to describe the marine and aquatic applications of biotechnology, but its use is relatively rare.

* Green biotechnology is biotechnology applied to agricultural processes. An example would be the selection and domestication of plants via micropropagation. Another example is the designing of transgenic plants to grow under specific environments in the presence (or absence) of chemicals. One hope is that green biotechnology might produce more environmentally friendly solutions than traditional industrial agriculture. An example of this is the engineering of a plant to express a pesticide, thereby ending the need of external application of pesticides. An example of this would be Bt corn. Whether or not green biotechnology products such as this are ultimately more environmentally friendly is a topic of considerable debate.

* Red biotechnology is applied to medical processes. Some examples are the designing of organisms to produce antibiotics, and the engineering of genetic cures through genetic manipulation.

* White biotechnology, also known as industrial biotechnology, is biotechnology applied to industrial processes. An example is the designing of an organism to produce a useful chemical. Another example is the using of enzymes as industrial catalysts to either produce valuable chemicals or destroy hazardous/polluting chemicals. White biotechnology tends to consume less in resources than traditional processes used to produce industrial goods.[citation needed] The investment and economic output of all of these types of applied biotechnologies is termed as bioeconomy.

Medicine

In medicine, modern biotechnology finds promising applications in such areas as

* drug production

* pharmacogenomics

* gene therapy

* genetic testing: techniques in molecular biology detect genetic diseases. To test the developing fetus for Down syndrome, Amniocentesis and chorionic villus sampling can be used.

Career options

As there is increasing popularity and explosive growth, there is plenty of opportunities available in Biotechnology field. You can be a Research Scientist, Teacher, Marketing manager, Science Writer, Bioinformists, Quality Control Officer or Production in-charge in the Food, Chemical and Pharmaceutical industry. Analyst (Venture-Capitalist)Environmental / Safety Specialist .Biotechnology companies require Corporate Executives with business/management Degrees. A graduate in Biotechnology can get job in government sectors such as Universities and Colleges, Research institutes or at Private Centers as Research scientists/assistants.

Lab technician: includes cleaning and maintaining equipment used by scientists and working on the various pieces of lab equipment as instructed. Research associate: If you are interested in Research and Development, then becoming a Research Associate can provide an interesting career that allows you to carry out experiments under the instruction of established Scientists.

Research scientist: if you wish to enter the field at a high level, you may choose to become a Research Scientist. This involves working alongside established scientists to design and carry out experiments, then writing reports for future publication. Engineer (Chemical, Electrical, Environmental and Industrial): This position would involve engaging in a range of projects from building robots to assisting with Research and Development

. Sales representative: As a sales representative, you would work with hospitals, doctors and a wide range of medical institutions to keep them aware of biotechnology's latest offerings, as well as trying to encourage their approval for your products over rival products in the market. Marketing: In biotechnology marketing, you would manage and devise campaigns aimed at particular customer areas, through such methods as working with advertising agencies and maintaining a visible presence at medical conventions and trade shows. Business development manager

: This position involves working with colleagues to introduce products and to negotiate agreements with strategic partners