Biotechnology of animals

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The Biotechnology and Biological Sciences Research Council (BBSRC) is the United Kingdom’s principal funder of basic and strategic biological research. To deliver its mission, the BBSRC supports research and training in universities and research centers and promotes knowledge transfer from research to applications in business, industry and policy, and public engagement in the biosciences. The site contains extensive articles on the ethical and social issues involved in animal biotechnology.

The Department of Agriculture (USDA) provides leadership on food, agriculture, natural resources and related issues through public policy, the best available science and efficient management. The National Institute of Food and Agriculture is part of the USDA; its site contains information about the science behind animal biotechnology and a glossary of terms. Related topics also are searchable, including animal breeding, genetics and many others.

The Pew Initiative on Food and Biotechnology is an independent, objective source of information on agricultural biotechnology. Funded by a grant from the Pew Charitable Trusts to the University of Richmond, it advocates neither for nor against agricultural biotechnology. Instead, the initiative is committed to providing information and encouraging dialogue so consumers and policy-makers can make their own informed decisions.

Animal biotechnology is the use of science and engineering to modify living organisms. The goal is to make products, to improve animals and to develop microorganisms for specific agricultural uses.

Examples of animal biotechnology include creating transgenic animals (animals with one or more genes introduced by human intervention), using gene knock out technology to make animals with a specific inactivated gene and producing nearly identical animals by somatic cell nuclear transfer (or cloning).