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NTNU's definition of biotechnology is as follows "technology that utilizes biological systems, living organisms or parts of this to develop or create different products" or in my own simpler terms I believe biotechnology is the use if a living organism to get a desired product.

The main purpose of biotechnology is to construct products with the deliberate intention to enhance the grade or value of human life. Biotechnology helps "Heal, Fuel, and Feed the world".

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A GMO, or genetically modified organism, is a plant, animal, microorganism or other organism whose genetic makeup has been modified in a laboratory using genetic engineering or transgenic technology. This creates combinations of plant, animal, bacterial and virus genes that do not occur in nature or through traditional crossbreeding methods.

Genetic modification affects many of the products we consume on a daily basis. As the number of GMOs available for commercial use grows every year, the Non-GMO Project works diligently to provide the most accurate, up-to-date standards for non-GMO verification.

In order for a product to be Non-GMO Project Verified, its inputs must be evaluated for compliance with our standard, which categorizes inputs into three risk levels.

“What Is a GMO?” Non-GMO Project, www.nongmoproject.org/gmo-facts/what-is-gmo/.

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What is a GMO? Let us quickly explain...

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Monkeys are a better test subject for STD research, but then we can have another option to test on.
“But what makes research in monkeys so much better is that SIV in monkeys is much more closely related to HIV, so it’s more straightforward to draw conclusions than it would be with FIV.
In both humans and cats, proteins called restriction factors that normally fight off viral infections are defenseless against HIV and FIV because the viruses have evolved potent counter-weapons.But certain monkey versions of these restriction factors are capable of fighting the viruses.
So by using cats it would be another alternative than using monkeys, however it may not be as effective.

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the relevance of using the genetically modified cats is that then we will be able to find out how to target STD cells and exterminate them from a certain human body infected

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Allerca is selling the cats for $3,500 each, and started delivering in 2007. Up to 10 percent of the U.S. population has allergies to cats, and according to CNN, "cat allergen is also one of the main causes of childhood allergies, asthma, and other respiratory diseases such as bronchitis." Allerca terminated production of a protein produced by the cat’s skin and salivary glands that cause cat allergies.

Essentially by doing this process it would be a very pricey project and could cause potentially more problems for a people, than helping with research.

Appell, David. “Genetically Engineered Cats.” MIT Technology Review, MIT Technology Review, 22 Oct. 2012, www.technologyreview.com/s/403276/genetically-engineered-cats/.

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Three cats genetically modified to resist feline immunodeficiency virus (FIV) have opened up new avenues for AIDS research.

The research could also help veterinarians combat the virus, which kills millions of feral cats each year and also infects big cats, including lions.

Prosaically named TgCat1, TgCat2 and TgCat3, the GM cats - now a year old - glow ghostly green under ultraviolet light because they have been given the green fluorescent protein (GFP) gene originating from jellyfish.

The GM cats also carry an extra monkey gene, called TRIMCyp, which protects rhesus macaques from infection by feline immunodeficiency virus or FIV - responsible for cat AIDS.

By giving the gene to the cats, the team hopes to offer the animals protection from FIV. Their study could help researchers develop and test similar approaches to protecting humans from infection with HIV.

Cat immunity

Already, the researchers have demonstrated that lab cultures of white blood cells from the cats are protected from FIV, and they hope to give the virus to the cats to check whether they are immune to it.

"The animals clearly have the protective gene expressed in all their tissues including the lymph nodes, thymus and spleen," says Eric Poeschla of the Mayo Clinic College of Medicine in Rochester, Minnesota, who led the research. "That's crucial because that's where the disease really happens, and where you see destruction of T-cells targeted by HIV in humans."

The animals are not the first GM cats, but the new method is far more efficient and versatile than previous techniques. The first cloned cat, born in 2001, was the only one to survive from 200 embryos, each created by taking an ear cell from cats, removing the nucleus and fusing it with a cat egg cell emptied of its own nucleus.

Poeschla's technique is far more direct, far more efficient and far simpler, and has already been used successfully to make GM mice, pigs, cows and monkeys. He loads genes of interest into a lentivirus, which he then introduces directly into a cat oocyte, or egg cell. The oocyte loaded with the new genes is then fertilised and placed in the womb of a foster mother.

From 22 implantations, Poeschla achieved 12 fetuses in five pregnancies, and three live births. And out of the 12 fetuses, 11 successfully incorporated the new genes, demonstrating how efficient the method is.

One surviving male kitten, TgCat1, has already mated with three normal females, siring eight healthy kittens that all carry the implanted genes as well, showing that they are inheritable.

But there are doubts about whether cats will replace monkeys as the staples of HIV research. "It's fantastic they've created GM cats," says Theodora Hatziioannou of the Aaron Diamond AIDS Research Center in New York City.

"But what makes research in monkeys so much better is that SIV in monkeys is much more closely related to HIV, so it's more straightforward to draw conclusions than it would be with FIV.

Journal reference&colon; Nature Methods, DOI&colon; 10.1038/NMETH.1703

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Glowing transgenic cats could boost AIDS research

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Three cats genetically modified to resist feline immunodeficiency virus (FIV) have opened up new avenues for AIDS research. The research could also help veterinarians combat the virus, which kills millions of feral cats each year and also infects big cats, including lions.

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Green Glowing Cats Might Help In Hiv Research | Drugs & Medications articles | Therapies & Treatments center | SteadyHealth.com

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Genetic Engineering Pioneered by the Creation of Green Glowing Rabbits In 2000 the French geneticist Louis-Marie Houdebine captured headlines around the world with the creation of "Alba," a genetically modified white rabbit who had been given genes from

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Coghlan, Andy. “Glowing Transgenic Cats Could Boost AIDS Research.” New Scientist, New Scientist, 11 Sept. 2011, www.newscientist.com/article/dn20896-glowing-transgenic-cats-could-boost-aids-research/.

Rister, Robert. “Green Glowing Cats Might Help In Hiv Research.” SteadyHealth.com, 20 Sept. 2011, www.steadyhealth.com/articles/green-glowing-cats-might-help-in-hiv-research.

“Glowing Cats Shed Light on Aids.” BBC News, BBC, 12 Sept. 2011, www.bbc.com/news/science-environment-14882008.

“What Is Biotechnology?” BIO, www.bio.org/what-biotechnology.

“What Is a GMO?” Non-GMO Project, www.nongmoproject.org/gmo-facts/what-is-gmo/.

Appell, David. “Genetically Engineered Cats.” MIT Technology Review, MIT Technology Review, 22 Oct. 2012, www.technologyreview.com/s/403276/genetically-engineered-cats/.

Houdebine, Louis Marie. “Impacts of Genetically Modified Animals on the Ecosystem and Human Activities.” Taylor & Francis, 12 Mar. 2014, www.tandfonline.com/doi/full/10.1080/11287462.2014.894709.

“What Is Biotechnology? - Department of Biotechnology and Food Science.” Go to Start Page, www.ntnu.edu/ibt/about-us/what-is-biotechnology.

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At its simplest, biotechnology is technology based on biology - biotechnology harnesses cellular and biomolecular processes to develop technologies and products that help improve our lives and the health of our planet. We have used the biological processes of microorganisms for more than 6,000 years to make useful food products, such as bread and cheese, and to preserve dairy products.

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At its simplest, biotechnology is technology based on biology - biotechnology harnesses cellular and biomolecular processes to develop technologies and products that help improve our lives and the health of our planet. We have used the biological processes of microorganisms for more than 6,000 years to make useful...

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how does this benefit/harm me/ or others?

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how does this benefit/harm me/ or others?

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“The animals clearly have the protective gene shown in all their tissues including the lymph nodes, thymus and spleen,” says Eric Poeschla of the Mayo Clinic College of Medicine in Rochester, Minnesota, who led the research. That’s critical because that’s where the disease targets, and where you see demolition of T-cells targeted by HIV cells in humans.