The Profession of Biochemistry

Jamie Raughton Mr. Keeland Chemistry Honors 10/27/17 Biochemistry: Chemistry Biochemistry is the study of the chemistry that takes place in living organisms, especially the structure and function of their chemical components, such as proteins, carbohydrates, lipids, nucleus acids, and small molecules present in cells. Biochemistry can be classified into 4 major categories carbohydrates, lipids, proteins and amino acid, and nucleic acids. There are so many jobs available in the field of biochemistry for example hospitals, universities, agriculture, food institute, education, cosmetics, forensic crime research, drug discovery and development. Biochemists provide new ideas and experiments to help us better understand how life works, support our

Biochemists are scientists who study the chemistry that is relate to the biological organisms. According to State university website “Their work includes studying the complex chemical combinations and reactions involved in metabolism, reproduction, growth, and heredity.” Biochemists have a verity of career positions or work environment where they can find themselves in. “Some biochemists study the body’s immune response to germs and allergens or the effectiveness of drugs in treating a wide array of afflictions. Other biochemists work in the commercial food or agricultural field looking for ways to improve products and crops” (Guide to Biochemistry Careers, 2013). Biochemists function in the medical field to help in the diagnosis of various manageable diseases by analyzing body fluids, urine and blood.

Today, the main emphasis of pure biochemistry is in understanding how biological molecules give rise to the developments that occur within living cells, which in turn relates largely to the study and understanding of complete organisms. Biochemistry is closely connected to molecular biology, the study of the molecular mechanisms by which genetic information encoded in DNA is able to result in the procedures of life. Depending on the precise definition of the terms used, molecular biology can be believed to be a branch of biochemistry, or biochemistry as a tool of which to examine and study molecular biology. Much of biochemistry deals with the arrangements, functions and interactions of biological macromolecules, such as proteins, nucleic acids, carbohydrates and lipids, which make up the structure of cells and carry out many of the functions related with life. The chemistry of the cell also rests on on the reactions of smaller molecules and ions.

For this, it requires integrated use of biochemistry, microbiology and engineering science. There are various different federations that work for biotechnology and help promote use of this new innovated field for public benefit and its environment. Focusing on this new emerging field of biotechnology can help our environment and focus on many unanswered questions yet at the same time the complexity such as bioethical issues, safety, bioterrorism remains fast-paced throughout our country in fact in the entire world.

Isolation of the vector DNA from the host cell’s DNA and then is purified. Biotechnology products are those that are manufactured by a recombinant DNA Technology which is produced by biotechnology. These products include vaccines, antibiotics, transgenic plants, genetically modified organisms and lastly beverages. Biotechnology is not just one technology but several of them as it can produce an extensive variety of products across a range of industrial sectors like drought-resistant crops, ethanol from fermentation, microorganisms which clean up oil spills and many others. According to Yourgenome.org, Gene therapy is basically when the DNA is introduced into a patient to treat a genetic disease.

DEFINITIONS “Genetic Engineering, or gene splicing is the scientific alteration of the structure of genetic material in a living organism. It involves the production and use of recombinant DNA and has been employed to create bacteria that synthesize insulin and other human proteins” (Source 1). Genetic engineering allows scientists to take the genes of one species and combine them with those of another. Which essentially means that they have the power to completely re-modify an existing creature or even create an entirely new species. This is obviously going to be one of the more controversial issues when it comes to gene splicing because in a way the scientists, through biotechnical means, are playing the role of God.

In the body they serve as a repair system, continually dividing without limit to repair damaged tissues. As they divide the cells can either continue to be stem cells or convert into a specialized type of cell, such as, a red blood cell, a muscle cell, a brain cell, etc. This ability to transform or morph into a new cell is what has gained the interest of Chemists and Chemical Engineers alike. As research develops, their goal is to learn as much as possible about one of the tiniest pieces of the puzzle that is stem cells, the molecule. As says Sheng Ding, a chemist at Scripps Research Institute, "We think if you understand what the signals are that control stem cell fate--and we know there are stem cells reserved in pretty much all the tissues in adults--we can possibly develop small-molecule therapeutics or other types of therapeutics that stimulate in vivo regeneration.

People in the past learned how to use the environment materials in order to achieve the requirements of life and to help them to survive. Engineering simply means the ability to solve problems. By understanding the world's problems, and by focusing and trying to solve them we give a simple definition to the word engineering. The engineering has many branches which have evolved over time and one of these branches is bioengineering which contains also many branches such as Genetic Engineering. Genetic Engineering According to dictionary.com website, Genetic Engineering is "the development and application of scientific methods , procedures, and technologies that permit direct manipulation of genetic material in order to alter the hereditary traits of a cell, organism, or population."

Proteases are used which act on protein-based stains from substances such as egg, grass, blood, meat and human sweat. Lipases in detergents act on stains from fat and oil based ... ... middle of paper ... ...ood clotting enzymes are used to treat haemophilia and cause the blood to clot, and proteases are used in blood thinning treatments to prevent dangerous blood clots. It is thought that enzymes may be able to treat genetic diseases but at present it is not possible to easily target specific cells that need treatment, for example mucus cells in the lungs of cystic fibrosis sufferers could be targeted and made to stop producing excess mucus. Without enzymes, many products would be impossible to manufacture, or the processes used to make them would be made much more costly and less simple to use. The use of enzymes in medicine is incredibly important in treating many diseases, which could otherwise be fatal.

PNAs can bind with high specificity to a selected target in a gene sequence, so this makes them very significant, especially in the medicinal and biotechnological perspectives. However, before learning how PNA is useful in that way, it is crucial to learn about its properties and their meaning. Peptide nucleic acid is a very special polymer that is unique in its characteristics, functions, and use in the modern world. 3 Although PNA may not be a common household word, it is quite familiar to molecular scientists all over the world. It is a potent structural mimic of DNA with a pseudopeptide backbone.