Research Centers
UNLV Biotechnology Center
While a complex science, biotechnology is rapidly becoming one of the most significant industries in our nation. The focus of the UNLV Biotechnology Center is to provide the education necessary to train students interested in pursing careers in biotechnology as well as to encourage new community-based business/industry in this field.
What is Biotechnology?
The application of biological knowledge and techniques to develop commercial products is a simple definition of biotechnology also known as "applied biology."
It may be further defined as the use of living organisms to make a product or run a process. By this definition, the classic techniques used for plant and animal breeding, fermentation, and enzyme purification would be considered biotechnology. This term is now also being used to refer to newer tools of genetic science.
In this context, biotechnology may be defined as the use of biotechnical methods to modify the genetic materials of living cells so they will produce new substances or perform new functions. Examples include recombinant DNA technology, in which a copy of a piece of DNA containing one or a few genes is transferred between organisms or "recombined" within an organism.