The biological sciences have experienced enormous growth over the last century,
fueled by a stream of discoveries — such as the principles of genetics, the structure of
DNA, and the discovery of gene splicing technologies. These have opened new fields of
inquiry and provided the basis for myriad applications in industry, agriculture, and
medicine. Among the technological breakthroughs in the life sciences, genetic
engineering plays a particularly significant role.
Genetic engineering is a technique that permits the artificial modification and
transfer of the genetic material from one organism to another and from one species to
another. This technology is used throughout the world to alter the protein produced by a
gene and to design organisms with desirable traits for applications ranging from basic
research and development activities to pharmaceutical and industrial uses. During the
last 30 years, these recombinant techniques have spawned a vibrant biotechnology
industry focused largely on the development of new pharmaceuticals to fight disease.6
By 2000 the annual investment in the biotechnology industry peaked at nearly $29
billion, while employment in the biotechnology industry reached 191,000 by 2001.7
In response to the opportunities presented by these developments the resources
devoted to the life sciences have increased dramatically, making further discoveries
possible. The government has funded biological research generously through the
National Institutes of Health and National Science Foundation budgets, with few strings
attached; private foundations and the pharmaceutical industry have also made major
contributions. The number of PhDs awarded each year in the biological and agricultural
sciences has increased steadily; 6,526 were awarded in 2001.8
This ever-expanding research activity has resulted in numerous new
biopharmaceutical products that are transforming medicine. Examples include human
recombinant insulin for the treatment of diabetes, a vaccine against hepatitis B, and
medicines for diabetes, cancer therapy, arthritis, multiple sclerosis, cystic fibrosis, heart
attacks, hemophilia, and sepsis. As knowledge of the human genome increases, it may
even become possible to tailor pharmaceutical products not only to specific diseases but
also to specific individuals. Throughout this process, the time between new discoveries
and their applications has grown ever shorter. One example is the very short time it took
the scientific community to identify the coronavirus as the causal agent of the newly
emerging human disease, severe acute respiratory syndrome (SARS).
Biotechnology research is now a truly global enterprise. While industrialized
countries such as the United States, the United Kingdom, Germany, Israel, and Japan
may be the first to develop advanced research and technologies, other countries have a skill base that will enable broad domestic utilization of biological technologies.9 For
example:
