Green Biotechnology

The course provides an in-depth knowledge of fundamental processes of plant function including how plants and other photosynthetic organisms interact with each other and their surrounding environment, and responses to environmental disturbances induced by human impacts. Green biotechnology is defined as the application of plants and other photosynthetic organisms with the aim to improve agricultural crops or for industrial purposes in order to generate industrially useful products in sectors such as detergents, paper, biofuels, textiles, pharmaceutical substances etc. The course covers the molecular biology of the plant cell, and focus on biotechnology applied to photosynthetic organisms. The biotechnologies presented during the course are based on functional genomics and proteomics; plant breeding (e.g. marker assisted selection) and quantitative genetics; genetically modified plants; phytoremediation and the utilization of bio-active compounds. Moreover, the course will discuss the role of plants in the industry, for example, how plants can be used in order to develop new products and eco-technology. The theoretical part of the course will be followed by a practical part where up-to-date methodology within biotechnology will be used.