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Neolithic peoples of Central Asia began the practice of milking their animals, and the natural enzymes in the carrying containers curdled the milk, essentially making yogurt. Later on, they adopted the process of making cheese,
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Antonie van Leeuwenhoek discovers/describes bacteria and protozoa.
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Edward Jenner uses the 1st viral vaccine to inoculate a child from smallpox.
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Louis Pasteur discovers the bacterial origin of fermentation.
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Gregor Mendel discoveres the laws of inheritance.
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Rob Koch develops technique for staining bacteria for identification.
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Louis Pasteur develops vaccines against bacteria that cause cholera and anthrax.
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Louis Pasteur and Emile Roux develop the first rabies vaccine and use it on Joseph Meister.
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Karl Ereky uses the word biotechnology for the first time. He coined the term to describe the merging of biology and technology.
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Alexander Fleming notices that certain mold could stop duplication of bacteria, leading to the first antibiotic, pencillin.
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James D. Watson and Francis Crick solve the structure of DNA for the first time. Other scientists, like Rosalind Franklin and Maurice Wilkins, also contributed to this discovery.
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Dr. Joseph Murray performs the first kidney transplant between identical twins.
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Dr. Osamu Shimomura discovers the green fluorescent protein in the jellyfish Aequorea victoria. He later develops it into a tool for observing previously invisible cellular processes.
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Dr. Har Gobind Khorana synthesizes the first complete gene at the University of Wisconsin–Madison.
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Stanley Norman Cohen and Herbert Boyer perform the first successful recombinant DNA experiment using bacterial genes.
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The US patent for gene cloning is awarded to Cohen and Boyer.
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Humulin, Genentech's human insulin drug produced by genetically engineered bacteria for treatment of diabetes, first biotech drug approved by Food and Drug Administration.
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Polymerase chain reaction conceived by Kary Mullis.
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Dr. Maynard Olson and colleagues at Washington University invent yeast artificial chromosomes, which are expression vectors for large proteins.
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The FDA approves Amgen’s first biologically derived human therapeutic for treatment of cancer.
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First federal approved gene therapy performed on a girl with immune disorder by Dr. W. French Anderson at NIH Clinical Center.
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US FDA approves "Flavr Savr Tomato" developed by Calenge, a small biotech company.
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The first human artificial chromosome is created by researchers in Ohio. A combination of natural and synthetic DNA is used to create a genetic cassette that can potentially be customized and used in gene therapy.
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Completed "rough draft" of human genome by Dr. Francis Collins and her team of the National Institutes of Health that took part in the effort.
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Human Genome Project is completed by the International Human Genome Sequencing Consortium and provides information on locations and sequence of human genes on all 46 human chromosomes.
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Scientists at University of Wisconsin-Madison discover how to use human skin cells to create embryonic stem cells.
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Dr. J. Craig Venter and his team replicate a bacterium's genetic structure entirely from laboratory chemicals, moving a step closer toward creating the world's first living artificial organism.
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Researchers at the J. Craig Venter Institute create the first synthetic cell.
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Advances in 3D printing plus innovative artist and inventor, Michael Vasilantone, lead to "skin printing."
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The augmented reality is a turning point for doctors. Those who have piloted the technology say the added comfort and visual information will allow surgeons to operate more efficiently and effectively. These advancements have been made possible by many companies.
