Biotechnology is defined as the application of biological systems to basic and technical and industrial processes. These processes are based on the use of some form of biological catalyst in the conversion of a substrate to a desired product. These biological catalysts are as simple as enzymes or highly complex microorganisms or eukaryotic cells.

Biotechnology includes a wide range of activities. Each activity is associated with its own starting material (bacterial, fungal, yeast, plant, or animal cells or enzymes), technical manipulation (cell fusion, cell or enzyme immobilization, genetic engineering, etc.), processes (continuous or batch fermentation), and scale (small to very large), which are unique to that activity. 

Scope of Biotechnology

Biotechnology can be viewed as a group of useful, enabling technologies with wide and diverse applications. It has large, highly profitable, modern industrial outlets of great value to society e.g. DNA recombinant technology, most revolutionary branch of the modern science and have a profound impacts on medicine, contributing to the diagnosis and cure of hereditary defects and serious diseases. The development of new biopharmaceutical drugs and vaccines for human and animal use. The modification of microorganisms, plants and farmed animals for improved and tailored food production and to increased opportunities for environmental remediation and protection. New technologies dealing with plant and animal breeding are much faster and have lower costs. Genetically modified crops are growing exponentially. The field is further exemplified with the industrial production of enzymes like proteases, amylases, cellulases, lipases etc. Industrial manufacturing plants for milk and milk products, alcohols, organic acids, antibiotics, vitamins, growth promoting factors, monoclonal antibodies etc.