How does current medicine benefit from biotechnology / gene technology?
Biotechnology with gene technology is a key factor in medical progress. Because medicine is a special domain of life science, research progress in the two domains is often undistinguishable, and of profit to both. Many diseases are caused because a specific protein from the human body is lacking or not functioning well. Administering this protein as a drug can allow complete or partial recovery. The protein can be isolated from human cells or tissue. This procedure can have severe consequences: preparations of proteins from human blood for example, are not always safe. In the beginning of the ’80’s many haemophilia patients lacking a blood cloth factor have been infected with HIV. The blood factors administered to these patients, contained remains of the HIV-virus from seropositive blood donors. Currently, the human blood cloth factor is produced in the lab, by means of gene technology. Today, many drugs are produced in a lab, using biotech tools. Bacteria, yeast and animal cells produ
