Antibiotic- A substance, such as penicillin or streptomycin, produced by or derived from certain fungi, bacteria, and other organisms, that can destroy or inhibit the growth of other microorganisms.
Backcross Breeding- a method for improving an established variety that is deficient in only one or a few characteristics.
Biotechnology- the use of living organisms or other biological systems in the manufacture of drugs, or other products, for environmental management, as in waste recycling.
Chromosome- any of several threadlike bodies, consisting of chromatin, that carry the genes in a linear order.
Clone- a cell, cell product, or organism that is genetically identical to the unit or individual from which it was derived.
DNA- deoxyribonucleic acid: an extremely long macromolecule that is the main component of chromosomes and is the material that transfers genetic characteristics in all life forms.
Gene- the basic physical unit of heredity; a linear sequence of nucleotides along a segment of DNA that provides the coded instructions for synthesis of RNA, which, when translated into protein, leads to the expression of hereditary character.
Genetically Modified- any alteration of genetic material, as in agriculture, to make them capable of producing new substances or performing new functions
Genetic Engineering- a technique that produces unlimited amounts of otherwise unavailable or scarce biological product by introducing DNA isolated from animals or plants into bacteria and then harvesting the product from a bacterial colony.
Nucleus- a specialized, usually spherical mass of protoplasm encased in a double membrane, and found in most living eukaryotic cells, directing their growth, metabolism, and reproduction, and functioning in the transmission of genetic characters.
Pharmaceutical- pertaining to pharmacy or pharmacists.
Transgene- a gene that is taken from the genome of one organism and introduced into the genome of another organism by artificial techniques.
