Biotechnology Resources for Educators:
Virginia, National, and Global Documents and Web Links

Virginia Department of Education
Office of Career and Technical Education Services
March 2002

Biotechnology Resources in Virginia

• Introduction to Bioengineering
  This PowerPoint presentation is designed as an introduction to bioengineering for use in the Bioengineering classroom.
  Virginia Department of Education
• Information Systems for Biotechnology
  “ISB resources are designed to serve the agricultural and environmental biotechnology community at large, including scientists, regulators, teachers, administrators, and the interested public.”
  ISB: 207 Engel Hall, Virginia Tech, Blacksburg, VA 24061; 540-231-3747; isb@vt.edu.
• Fralin Biotechnology Center: Your Link to Biotechnology on the Net
  “The Biotechnology Center is an interdisciplinary research center, not a department. Although no major is offered in biotechnology, seven departments in three different colleges participate in the Biotechnology Option.” The Center promotes biotechnology education from high school through college. See the Outreach link for information on how the Center can assist teachers and students.
  Fralin Biotechnology Center: Virginia Tech, Blacksburg, VA 24061-0346; 540-231-6933; 540-231-7126 (fax); biotech@vt.edu.
• Public Perception Issues in Biotechnology
  Issues addressed in this web site include concerns about transgenic applications, public perceptions of biotechnology, human and animal biotechnology (including cloning), biological control of plant pests, commercialization and development of transgenic crops, and environmental biotechnology (e.g., sources of fecal pollution in water). Authors also offer their biotechnology glossary.
  Charles Hagedorn and Susan Allender-Hagedorn, Virginia Tech
• Bioinformatics at Virginia Tech
  “Research programs in bioinformatics, computational biology, and genomic science at Virginia Tech encompass biological questions from the DNA sequence level all the way up to the phenotype level. Projects range from modeling complex biological systems and developing new algorithms for data analysis to producing new biotech products and improving experimental methodologies.”
  Virginia Bioinformatics Institute at Virginia Tech
• Virginia Tech Center for Genomics
  This center provides focus on teaching statistical genetics, functional genomics, bioinformatics and molecular engineering.
• James Madison University: Biotechnology Major
  Biotechnology Sector Courses and Resources.
• Biotechnology at the University of Virginia
  The university offers several biotechnology-related degree programs:
  Undergraduate Bioethics Program
  Biomedical Engineering
  Center for Biomedical Ethics and Humanities
• Center for Biotechnology at Old Dominion University
  The Center for Biotechnology “. . . is a contract lab focused primarily on applied biomedical research, including product development for a specific discipline (e.g., cryopreserved cardiovascular tissue), validation of a process for a product (e.g., Allowash cleaning of bone), or materials testing to determine component leaching probability. The staff is composed of technicians, graduate students, undergraduate students, and volunteers, all with a broad range of background experience.”
  
• Virginia Biotechnology Research Park
  Located in Richmond adjacent to the medical sciences campus of Virginia Commonwealth University and the Medical College of Virginia Hospitals, the Park is home to 34 biotechnology, bioscience and related companies and research institutions.
  
• Virginia Biotechnology Association
  See especially “VCAT” for Virginia careers in biotechnology.
  VaBIO Office, Virginia Biotechnology Association
• WilBio
  “The Williamsburg BioProcessing Foundation was established in 1994 to provide venues for the exchange of bioprocess technology. Whereas other conferences were known to adequately cover the scientific, regulatory, and clinical issues associated with biotechnology, [the founders] felt there was a need for meetings that provided a thorough coverage of process development and production issues while focusing on narrowly defined applications.”
  Williamsburg BioProcessing Foundation
• Piedmont Virginia Community College’s Biotechnology Certificate
  “By successfully completing the biotechnology curriculum, students will develop the skills necessary to be competitive for laboratory specialist positions at the University of Virginia and for other lab research positions at biotech companies.”
• Northern Virginia Community College’s Associate of Applied Science Degree in Biotechnology
  “This program is designed to prepare graduates for employment in entry-level positions at biotechnology and pharmaceutical companies, as laboratory, research, or manufacturing technicians. Coursework will develop an understanding of basic scientific principles in biology and chemistry, and will emphasize laboratory techniques and procedures such as solution and media preparation, DNA purification and analysis, electrophoresis, chromatography, maintenance of cells in culture, and quality control techniques.”

Other State, National, and Global Biotechnology Resources

• Access Excellence
  This site is “a national educational program that provides high school biology and life science teachers access to their colleagues, scientists, and critical sources of new scientific information via the World Wide Web.” It contains links to biotechnology issues, careers, and a graphics gallery, as well as classroom activities, a teaching exchange, and other educational resources.
  National Health Museum.
• Guide to Biotechnology
  Has links for biotechnology tools, timeline, technologies, techniques, applications, associations, and industry statistics.
  Biotechnology Industry Organization, 2003
• Bio-Link: Educating the Biotechnology Workforce
  Bio-Link is a National Advanced Technological Education (ATE) Center for Biotechnology that originated in late 1998 with a grant from the National Science Foundation. This site contains curriculum links, career information, and other biotechnology information useful to teachers and students. Users must register (no cost) to get curriculum materials.
  Bio-Link: City College of San Francisco
• Electronics Technicians Association (ETA) Competencies
  Mastery of these competencies is required to earn the ETA Electronics Certification (Journeyman Option) as a Biomedical Electronics Technician or Biomedical Imaging Equipment Technician.
• Dupont Biotechnology
  This commercial site includes links to the history, the science, the safety, and the future of biotechnology, as well as Internet resources, background articles, fact sheets, and speeches related to biotechnology.
  E. I. du Pont de Nemours and Co., 2008
• Your World: Biotechnology and You
  A biotechnology publication for 7th-12th grade students. Each issue provides an in-depth exploration of a particular biotechnology topic by looking at the science and its practical applications.
  Biotechnology Institute
• Project Bio
  Project BIO is a partnership for biology education, involving educators and students at Iowa State University, Iowa community colleges, Iowa high schools and selected Iowa industries with the goal of developing and sharing biology education resources via the Internet.
  Iowa State University
• Iowa State University’s Office of Biotechnology
  The Biotechnology home page from Iowa State University is a comprehensive web site that contains information on educational, bioethics, research, and industrial resources.
• Biotechnology for Agriculture
  On this site of the USDA, see particularly the information on biotechnology-related laws and regulations, trade, and links.
  U.S. Department of Agriculture
• Council for Biotechnology Information
  The Council was formed in 2000 “by leading biotechnology companies to create a comprehensive communication campaign about biotechnology.” This Council site concentrates on agricultural, environmental, and nutritional aspects of biotechnology. It gives an explanation of biotechnology and offers free printed and downloadable publications on the subject.
  Council for Biotechnology Information
• Academic Info : Biotechnology
  This site provides links for directed research about biotechnology, including Table of Contents, Indexes & Directories, Digital Library, Organizations, Agriculture, Genome Projects, and related subjects.
  Academic Info
• Gene Almanac
  This site is “an animated primer on the basics of DNA, genes, and heredity.” It is organized around the key concepts of classical genetics; molecules of genetics; and genetic organization and control. “The science behind each concept is explained by: animation, image gallery, video interviews, problem, biographies, and links.”
  Dolan DNA Learning Center, Cold Spring Harbor Laboratory
• Gateway to Educational Materials
  This site is a “one-stop, any-stop access to high quality lesson plans, curriculum units, and other education resources on the Internet.” Type in biotechnology and search the site by title, keyword, description, or full text.
• National Center for Biotechnology Information
  This Center is a national resource for molecularbiology information, NCBI creates public databases, conducts research in computational biology, develops software tools for analyzing genome data, and disseminates biomedical information. See especially the education and tutorial links.
  National Library of Medicine and National Institutes of Health
• National Centre for Biotechnology Education
  This site from the United Kingdom includes international biotechnology education links and free discussion groups.
  NCBE School of Food Biosciences, University of Reading, United Kingdom
• Biotechnology in Food and Agriculture
  This United Nations site contains information to the role and impact of biotechnology in food and agriculture, including the following:
  • FAO Statement on Biotechnology.
  • Overview of FAO’s biotechnology activities
  • Overview of biotechnology in the agro-industry, crop, fisheries, forestry and livestock sectors
  • FAO Electronic Forum on Biotechnology in Food and Agriculture
  Food and Agriculture Organization of the United Nations
• National Reference Center for Bioethics Literature
  The NRCBL is the world’s largest library collection related to ethical issues in medicine and biomedical research. It serves both as a reference library for the public and as a resource for scholars from the U.S. and other countries worldwide.
  Georgetown University
• AgBioForum
  This journal is “devoted to the economics and management of agrobiotechnology.”
  University of Missouri-Columbia
• Ag BioTech InfoNet
  Ag BioTech InfoNet is sponsored by a consortium of scientific, environmental and consumer organizations, each of whom contribute ideas, content, and direction to the site.
  Ecologic, Inc, Sandpoint, Idaho