Department of Biotechnology

Chairman: Dr. Saif Ullah (Assoc. Prof.)

The Department was established in 1996 with an objective of imparting quality education in the multidisciplinary field of Biotechnology at both undergraduate and postgraduate levels.

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 simple as enzymes or highly complex microorganisms or eukaryotic cells.

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 impact on medicine, contributing to the diagnostics and cure of hereditary defects and serious disease and the development of new biopharmaceutical drugs and vaccines for human and animal use. It also deals with the modification of microorganisms, plants and farm 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, celluloses and lipases, industrial manufacturing plants for milk and milk products,alcohols, organic acids, antibiotics, vitamins, growth promoting factors and monoclonal antibodies.

Career Opportunities

Graduates of Biochemistry usually get employment in well-known Pharmaceutical and food industries of Pakistan. Countless opportunities are available in clinical Laboratories, research institutes and teaching Institutions.