History of Biotechnology
- 500 B.C.: In China, the first antibiotic, moldy soybean curds, is put to use to treat boils.
- A.D. 100: The first insecticide is produced in China from powdered chrysanthemums.
- 1761: English surgeon Edward Jenner pioneers vaccination, inoculating a child with a viral smallpox vaccine.
- 1870: Breeders crossbreed cotton, developing hundreds of varieties with superior qualities.
- 1870: The first experimental corn hybrid is produced in a laboratory.
- 1911: American pathologist Peyton Rous discovers the first cancer-causing virus.
- 1928: Scottish scientist Alexander Fleming discovers penicillin.
- 1933: Hybrid corn is commercialized.
- 1942: Penicillin is mass-produced in microbes for the first time.
- 1950s: The first synthetic antibiotic is created.
- 1951: Artificial insemination of livestock is accomplished using frozen semen.
- 1958: DNA is made in a test tube for the first time.
- 1978: Recombinant human insulin is produced for the first time.
- 1979: Human growth hormone is synthesized for the first time.
- 1980: Smallpox is globally eradicated following 20-year mass vaccination effort.
- 1980: The U.S. Supreme Court approves the principle of patenting organisms, which allows the Exxon oil company to patent an oil-eating microorganism.
- 1981: Scientists at Ohio University produce the first transgenic animals by transferring genes from other animals into mice.
- 1982: The first recombinant DNA vaccine for livestock is developed.
- 1982: The first biotech drug, human insulin produced in genetically modified bacteria, is approved by FDA. Genentech and Eli Lilly developed the product.
- 1985: Genetic markers are found for kidney disease and cystic fibrosis.
- 1986: The first recombinant vaccine for humans, a vaccine for hepatitis B, is approved.
- 1986: Interferon becomes the first anticancer drug produced through biotech.
- 1988: The first pest-resistant corn, Bt corn, is produced.
- 1990: The first successful gene therapy is performed on a 4-year-old girl suffering from an immune disorder.
- 1992: FDA approves bovine somatotropin (BST) for increased milk production in dairy cows.
- 1993: FDA approves Betaseron®, the first of several biotech products that have had a major impact on multiple sclerosis treatment.
- 1994: The first breast cancer gene is discovered.
- 1994: The Americas are certified polio-free by the International Commission for the Certification of Polio Eradication.
- 1995: Gene therapy, immune-system modulation and recombinantly produced antibodies enter the clinic in the war against cancer.
- 1996: A gene associated with Parkinson’s disease is discovered.
- 1996: The first genetically engineered crop is commercialized.
- 1997: A sheep named Dolly in Scotland becomes the first animal cloned from an adult cell.
- 1998: FDA approves Herceptin®, a pharmacogenomic breast cancer drug for patients whose cancer overexpresses the HER2 receptor.
- 1999: A diagnostic test allows quick identification of Bovine Spongicorm Encephalopathy (BSE, also known as “mad cow” disease) and Creutzfeldt-Jakob Disease (CJD)
- 2000: Kenya field-tests its first biotech crop, virus-resistant sweet potato.
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