Description

The main focus of this topic is to maintain safe and potent biological system that preserves biodiversity. Biodiversity refers to the degree of variation in the biological, zoological and ecological aspects. This topic provides a bird’s eye view on how industrial advancement can be achieved by adopting trends, techniques, Quality Assurance, facility design and regulatory affairs by safeguarding the ecological balance.

Bioprospecting

Bioprospecting is the development of traditional medicines as commercial products. Pharmaceutical companies from the developed world often look for chemically active ingredients in traditional remedies, which they can develop into commercial pharmaceutical products. This is fiercely criticised as ‘biopiracy’ by those who believe it exploits indigenous knowledge. They point to the fact that companies may attempt to take out on a medicine derived from a traditional cure without recognising the original users. Others argue the huge investment in research and development by pharmaceutical companies gives them this right. Recent cases have seen agreements between traditional users of a medicine and pharmaceutical companies.

Wildlife and Pesticides

Pesticides are substances used to kill or control pests. Pesticides are usually not entirely specific in their action and can affect plants and animals they are not intended to harm.Insecticides are more toxic to wildlife than herbicides or fungicides. Wildlife can be exposed to pesticides directly, by eating contaminated food or water, breathing pesticide spray or absorbing pesticides through their skin. Predators such as hawks and owls can become poisoned by eating other animals that have been exposed to pesticides. Because many insecticides affect the nervous systems of wildlife, exposure to a particular insecticide can affect animals indirectly by interfering with their ability to survive or reproduce.

Biodiversity Conservation

Biodiversity is the incredible, dizzying variety of life that surrounds us, including all of the earth’s plants, animals, their habitats and the natural processes that they are a part of. It has become clear that biodiversity is the cornerstone of our existence on Earth. It is also important to conserve biodiversity for the sake of our own curiosity and aesthetic appreciation. Mountains are spectacular with splendid variety of wildlife and wildflowers. The world is full of biodiversity wonders, many of which are unique. Medicines originating from wild species including penicillin, aspirin, taxol and quinine have saved millions of lives and alleviated tremendous suffering.

Biopiracy

Biopiracy is the theft or usurpation of genetic materials especially plants and other biological materials by the patent process. To generalise corporations of the western world have since the past two decades or so been reaping immense profits by patenting the knowledge and genetic resources of Third World communities which also form biodiversity hotspots. Very often, the knowledge, processes and resources that are patented are widely known within a community. Once patented, the patent owner can effectively prevent competitors from producing the product, occasionally even interfering with the lifestyles of the community which is the original source of the patented information anyway.

Marine Bioprospecting

Marine bioprospecting may be defined as the search for bioactive molecules and compounds from marine sources having new, unique properties and the potential for commercial applications. Amongst others, applications include medicines, food and feed, textiles, cosmetics and the process industry. The Barents Sea, where temperate waters from the Gulf Stream and cold waters from the Arctic meet, is home to an enormous diversity of organisms, which are well adapted to the extreme conditions of their marine habitats. This makes these arctic species very attractive for marine bioprospecting.

Bioprospecting Pros and Cons

Discovery of several life-saving drugs including anti-neoplastic drugs in recent past has renewed the interest of pharmaceutical industries in Bioprospecting and imbalance in ecosystem due to excessive exploitation of material resources is always a possibility. While a focus on colonization has faded from the agendas of most countries, economic globalization has taken its place, largely fueled by the capitalist international trade system. Countries, and more recently corporations, now expand into the global market by establishing themselves as economic powerhouses, often at the expense of other countries or peoples.

Bioprospecting and Biodiversity

Bioprospecting is the method of discovering and developing recent merchandise of chemical compounds, genes, micro-organisms, macro-organisms supported by biological resources whereas Biodiversity is the presence of different kinds of species in an ecosystem. The need to protect biodiversity and to promote fairness in the use of genetic resources and associated traditional knowledge has engendered one of the most contentious debates of the 21^st century between developed and developing countries. This debate has fundamental implications for the way in which basic and applied research on genetic resources and biodiversity is conducted and its results are made available between and within peoples and societies.

Biodiversity and Ecology

Biodiversity is the divergency of species present in different eco-systems. It is also expressed as the exposure of the endangered or extinctive statistics of the variety of number of species existing in various eco-systems. In the atmosphere, gases such as water vapour, carbon dioxide, ozone, and methane act like the glass roof of a greenhouse by trapping heat and warming the planet. These gases are called greenhouse gases. The natural levels of these gases are being supplemented by emissions resulting from human activities, such as the burning of fossil fuels, farming activities and land-use changes. As a result, the Earth’s surface and lower atmosphere are warming, and this rise in temperature is accompanied by many other changes.

Wildlife Management

Wildlife Management is the pursuit of superintended management of the variety wildlife existing in the eco-system in various aspects such as habitat, food, conservation, genetic and physical mapping as well as evolution. Expanding human demands on land, sea and fresh water, along with the impacts of climate change, have made the conservation and management of wild areas and wild animals a top priority. But there are many different reasons for thinking that such conservation is important, and these reasons can shape conservation policies in different ways. Exploring some of the different  values that can direct conservation policy and explain how they can create ethical dilemmas and disagreements. Wild animals have always been a critical resource for human beings.

Wildlife Diversity

Wildlife Diversity is the distinctive study related to various types of species existing in the eco-system. It includes various aspects such as Genetic variation, Global diversity, Ecosystem diversity, maintaining genetically diverse and healthy livestock in fields like farm animal diversity.

Wildlife and Pollution

Pollution is the major issue affecting various kinds of life existing in the eco-systems through several aspects, wildlife, Pollution and Biodiversity are all inter-linked aspects, the climatic changes in the environment play a key role in the extinction of various endangered species. Pollution is among the most insidious threats to nature, it can be as revolting and obvious as an open dump, or as invisible as the chemicals sprayed on our crops and lawns. But whether the effect is long-term or immediate, the result is the same. Pollution alters the fragile balance of ecosystems and brings death to many animal populations.

Biodiversity Hotspots

Biodiversity Hotspots are Geographic areas that contain high levels of diversified species, but are threatened with extinction. There are currently 34 biodiversity hotspots in the world. Biodiversity hotspots are due to poor maintainence and conservation, Preservation, alimentation, resources and mutual sustained maintainence. To qualify as a biodiversity hotspot, a region must meet two strict criteria: It must have at least 1,500 vascular plants as endemics which is to say, it must have a high percentage of plant life found nowhere else on the planet. A hotspot, in other words, is irreplaceable. It must have 30% or less of its original natural vegetation. In other words, it must be threatened.

Importance of Biodiversity

Biodiversity, Ecosystems and their species perform important biological services, for example, green plants remove carbon dioxide and release oxygen into the atmosphere, which helps keep the environment healthy and fit for human life. Although we still have much to learn about the often complex function of ecosystems, and about which species perform critical roles, we know that if an ecosystem is altered in any way, it might not be able to perform some of its important services. Economic arguments also provide compelling reasons for conserving species. Different species of plants, animals, fungi and micro-organisms provide us with food, medicines, fuel, building materials, fibre for clothing and industrial products.

Benefits of Biodiversity

Maintaining Biodiversity has an obvious benefit, Robust Biodiversity has led to the development of Drugs that come from Plants or Microbes, half of all drugs on the market in the United States are derived from plants, animals or Microbial Organisms. The more plants, animals and microbes that exist, the better the chances of finding treatments for a wide range of diseases and conditions. It also has various benefits in the agricultural, business and industrial sectors. It has seen a progress in the Forest, Coral reef, Pharmaceutical and the field of human health. Biodiversity is the variation of life forms within a given ecosystem or on Earth more generally.

Genetic Biodiversity

Genetic Biodiversity refers to the variety of genetic characteristics involved in the genetic makeup of a species, it is the diversity within the species which acts as the major reason for the distinguishing characteristic expressed by each individual. All forms of life on earth, whether microbes, plants, animals or human beings contain genes. Genetic diversity is the sum of genetic information contained in the genes of individual plants, animals and micro-organisms. Each species is the storehouse of an immense amount of genetic information in the form of traits, characteristics, etc. The number of genes ranges from about 1,000 in bacteria to more than 4,00,000 in many flowering plants.