LS1001 (BIOLOGY)

2020-21 : AUTUMN
SECTION G/ SLOT TK

Introduction to Biology in
Engineering

Dr Bibekanand Mallick
Associate Professor
Department of Life Science
NIT Rourkela
 Syllabus
1. Introduction to application Biology in engineering science
2. Brief introduction to different organism (only five kingdom classification)
3. Cells
a. Unicellular organism
b. Multicellular organism
c. Cell theory – History, Classical and Modern concepts
4. Cell Morphology
a. Prokaryotic cells and its classification based on shape, nutrition and cell wall
b. Introduction to Archaea: only their habitat and functions in environment (we can avoid classification of archaea)
c. Eukaryotic cells and its classification – Animal cells, plant cells, fungi and single celled eukaryotes
5. Cell Anatomy
a. Ultrastructure of prokaryotes
i. All organelles
b. Ultrastructure of eukaryotes – Animal and plant cells
i. All eukaryotic cellular organelles
6. Cell multiplication
a. Prokaryotic multiplication - Asexual reproduction – Binary fission and Budding (Prokaryotes and few eukaryotes)
b. Eukaryotic cell multiplication – Cell cycle, Mitosis and Meiosis along with introduction the check point names (not in detail)
7. Biomolecules
a. Proteins – amino acid basic structure and types, protein structure and functions of proteins in living organism
b. Carbohydrates – sugar structure and types, polysaccharides types, glycoconjugates introduction, metabolism of
carbohydrates introduction and introduction to glycolysis and TCA, function of carbohydrates in living organism
c. Lipids – Fatty acids structure, type of lipids, function of lipid in living organism – e.g. hormone, cholesterol in cell wall,
lipoprotein in transportation of lipids, energy etc
d. Nucleic acids – Nucleoside, nucleotide, DNA structure and function – Chargaff’s rule, Watson and crick base pairing,
hydrogen bond, DNA melting and DNA as genetic material, RNA structure, types and functions, genome organisation
introduction
8. Central dogma of molecular biolog
a. Replication – replication
b. Translation
c. Transcription
 Suggested Reading

Essential Reading

1. Taylor DJ, Green NPO, Stout GW. Biological Science. 3rd edition (2006).

2. Nelson DL, Cox MM. Lehninger Principles of Biochemistry. 6th edition (2012).

Supplementary Reading

1. Satyanarayana U, Chakrapani U. Biochemistry. 4th edition (2013).

2. Campbell, Madhu VIJ, Ramalingam KK. Introduction to Biochemistry. 1st edition

(2010).

3. Stanier RY. General Microbiology. 5th edition (1986).

What is Biology?
• Biology (Greek or Latin origin)
• Bios = life
• The study of life
• Logos = study of
• The science of living things

Why study Biology?

• Biology is related to our everyday experiences (e.g. advancement of
medical facilities, addressing everyday needs of growing human
population etc.)

• Biology is comprised of a series of engineering problems which

have been solved by ‘Nature’ – Nature is the greatest engineer

• Any implications of biology in engineering/technology ???

Innovations in equipment, and devices that you see as miracles of
engineering and technology have been inspired from nature/biology
only, which is called ‘biomimicry’

Biomimicry (literally: imitation of the living ) aims to take inspiration

nature and translating to engineering/technological innovations to solve
complex human problems

Also called, Biomimetics

 A digital camera that sees like the human eye retina – reduction in
production of redundant data and image processing
 Insect-Eye camera offers wide-angle vision for tiny drones
(with a 180° range of vision and clear vision)
Shinkansen “bullet trains”: Biomimicry at it’s best

 Japan's famous bullet train

runs at a speed of about 320
km/hr
 Used to make a loud “tunnel
boom” when it travelled
through tunnels.
 Redesigned the front of the
train by providing the train a
long beak-like shape like that
of the Kingfisher

 Redesigned bullet train did not produce tunnel boom

 It aided in utilizing less electricity
 Enhanced speed of the bullet brain by 10%.
Sharklet - a biomimetic antibacterial and antifouling technology
US Navy adopted the design pattern of ‘dermal denticles’ of Shark
skin, and developed a material known as “Sharklet” which is used on
ships to inhibit the growth of marine or microbes on its surface.

New generation solar cell – inspired from butterfly wings

 Prepared from synthetic polymers

with nanoholes mimicking wings of
rose butterfly.
 This design enhanced the light
harvesting efficiency of solar cell
two times because this wing-like
structure has ability to collect light
at any angle just like wings of rose
butterflies.
 It is true that the devices or equipment which are either inspired or not
inspired from lessons of biology have been designed, mostly by the
engineers.

 Hence, there is a close relationship and interdependency between

engineering and biology, which we are either not aware of or not willing
to appreciate it.

 The engineers use science (biology or any other disciplines like physics,
chemistry etc) as their primary tool and often contribute to scientific
knowledge in the process.
 Neither science nor engineering can work without each other.
 Both science and engineering are a winning combination for driving
technological advancements
There are several inspiring examples of engineers involved in biological
research.

Frances Arnold received the Nobel prize in chemistry in 2018

She had done B.S.E. in mechanical and aerospace engineering
 ALLIANCE BETWEEN ENGINEERING AND BIOLOGY

 Both engineering and

biology has mutual
collaboration between them
leading to new
interdisciplinary concepts
that aids in development of
technologies.

 Each one of them has their

own sets of contribution,
either engineering in
biology or biology in
engineering.
 Mechanical Engineering and biology

Three major areas

Biomechanics
 Study of mechanics of how muscles, bones, tendons, and ligaments
or skeletal system work together to produce movement of a living
body with response to external forces and stimuli.

 Sports biomechanics -
assist in improving the level of athletic performance, eliminating
muscle imbalances, and reducing injuries

 Occupational biomechanics -
understand and optimize mechanical interaction of workers with the
environment in the industries

 Design of artificial implants (hearts, blood vessels)

 Engineering of living tissues (such as heart valves and intervertebral discs)

Nanomechanics

Deals with the simulations and measurements of mechanical behaviors of

nanomaterials at nanoscale levels, which is used in biology and medicine.

For example, Carbon Nanotubes (CNTs) are used in cancer drug

delivery for its high precision

Computational fluid dynamics (CFD)

Engineering tool that connects mechanics to mathematics and software
programming to execute simulation performing how a fluid (liquid or gas) flows

Virtual reconstructions, and simulation of different human organs,

pulmonary system etc through CFD help to predict associated
parameters and functions.
 Electronics Engineering and biology
Bioelectronics
The electronics engineering principles are applied to biology, medicine, behavior
or health.
Two Aspects

 Application of electronics to  Using biological system or

problems in biology, & medicine etc.
Example:
 Bioelectrontic implant device used to
reduce chronic pain in the body due to
lack of Gamma aminobutyric acid
(GABA) that works as a
neurotransmitter in human brain.
 Device transmits electric currents into
GABA, because of which GABA is
dispersed properly to the damaged
nerves, and pain is relieved.
 Glucometer, a portable device used to
measure blood sugar levels in patients
molecules (pigments, proteins,
DNA etc) in electronics.
Example:
 consists of almost 67% of all the
dyes used for denim production
 Indigo, a naturally occurring
pigment produced by plants
possess semi-conductor
properties.
 Used in making biomaterial-
based devices
organic transistors, diodes
or solar cells etc.
 Electrical Engineering and biology

Bio-bot
• 6 mm-long living tissue robots (hydrogel, rat cardiac cells)
• powered by muscle cells, controlled with electrical and optical pulses
• Roam in the body to deliver drugs, detect disease or remove pieces of
tissue

• Ultrasound – superficial organ structures

• MRI (Magnetic resonance imaging)- images of the organs and tissues in
the body.
 Computer Science Engineering and biology

What are you made up of? DNA bases (biological data)

How many? 3 billion

Bioinformatics integrates
computer science, biology,
statistics, mathematics, and
medical sciences etc to
understand the biological system
or to solve biology-based problems
 Civil Engineering and biology
Have you ever heard of using biological entities and concepts in civil
engineering? Probably, No.

Bioconcrete
 Concrete prepared through the addition of bacteria (e.g. Bacillus),
and calcium lactate that aids in sealing the cracks that appear in
it.
 When concrete structure has cracks, water seeped into it that
activate bacterial spores to germinate. Then, the bacteria start
consuming the calcium lactate, which gets converted into
insoluble limestone that solidifies on the cracked surface, thereby
sealing it up
Environmental engineering
 Deals with issues related to the environment and protecting organisms from
the effects of adverse environmental effects, such as pollution (soil, water,
air) and waste materials from industries and other places, as well as improving
quality of the environment by water resource management, bioremediation etc.

 Civil engineer contributes to environmental engineering through design,

construction and maintenance of facilities that are essential in solving
environmental problems.
 Chemical Engineering and biology

 Biofuels (biodiesel, hydrogen, ethanol

etc) have been successfully produced
using starches, sugars, or wastes by the
help of microorganisms

 Antibiotics like penicillin, streptomycin,

and many more which we usually take
when are ill are produced in large scale
from bacteria using fermentation
technologies that are part of chemical
engineering

 Wine production – Fermentation of

cultivated grape Vitis vinifera by Yeast
(Saccharomyces cerevisiae)
 Ceramic Engineering and biology
Manufacture objects from inorganic and non-metallic materials which are now
used as components in smartphones, computers, televisions, automotive
electronics, and medical devices etc

Bioceramics
 Ceramics used for the repair and reconstruction of human body parts, such as
synthetic bones and dental implants etc.
 Hydroxyapatite (HA), a bioceramic reinforced by polyethylene composites,
used as synthetic bone substitute

Bioceramics Applications
Alumina Artificial implants of knee, hip, shoulder, elbow, wrist
Zirconia Artificial implants of hip, and tooth
Calcium phosphate, HA Replacement of damaged teeth and bone
Bioglass Used as spinal fusion to protect spinal cord
 Mining Engineering and biology
Have you ever thought whether microbes help to mine metals?

Biomining
 Process in mining engineering that
deals with extraction of metals of from
rock ores, mineral concentrates, or mine
waste by using microorganisms

 Biomining produce ferric iron and

sulfuric acid that oxidizes minerals
containing insoluble metal sulfides
such as Fe2S, CuS, NiS, and ZnS into
their soluble sulfate forms e.g.,
Fe2SO4, CuSO4, NiSO4, and ZnSO4,
respectively

 Metals are recovered from the metal

sulfates that are biomined into the water
 Material Science and Engineering in Biology

 contributes in devising tools for research in biology, and biomedicine

 designing synthetic devices for replacement of damaged organs
 uses materials of biological sources for making materials for different
purposes

Example: capillary electrophoresis widely used in high-throughput DNA

sequencing

Biomimetic system
Example: bioadhesives from marine mussels has ability to function in wet
environments
works on the same principles as mussels attaching to underwater
surfaces and insects maintaining structural balance and flexibility
 BIOLOGICAL ENGINEERING
Biological Engineering or bioengineering is an interdisciplinary discipline that
focus on the application of engineering principles/disciplines (chemical, mechanical,
electrical etc) to develop solutions (product or process) for wide variety of problems
in biology

Biomedical engineering
 Also contributed by many disciplines of engineering including mechanical,
chemical, electronics, electrical etc.
 More specialized version or sub-discipline of biological engineering
 Focused on the production of new tools and processes that can be used to
improve human health.
Heart pacemaker that provides a consistent external stimulus to the heart
to beat in a controlled fashion artificially
Robotic surgery suites

Biotechnology
 arise out of biology and technology
 uses biological organisms and their products to manufacture useful materials
(sustainable crops, genetically engineered food, vaccines and antibiotics
etc).
 KEY POINTS TO REMEMBER
 Biomimicry or Biomimetics refers to manmade models, systems, processes,
substances, or devices that are inspired from nature.
 The engineers have applied lessons from biology to build a more efficient digital camera
inspired by the human retina of the eye.
 The design of turbine blades of the windmill mimics the ‘tubercles’ on the pectoral flippers
of humpback Whale that facilitate improvement in lift and energy efficiency in addition to
reducing in drag.
 The alliance between biology and different engineering branches give rise to new
solutions or disciplines.
 John Bardeen who was awarded the Nobel prize twice in 1956, and 1972 was an engineer
who had done a B.S. in Electrical Engineering.
 Bioelectronics uses biological system or molecules such as pigments, proteins, DNA etc
in electronics.
 Bioceramics such as hydroxyapatite are used for repair and reconstruction of human
body parts, such as synthetic bones and dental implants etc.
 Biological Engineering or bioengineering is an interdisciplinary discipline that focus on the
application of engineering principles/disciplines (chemical, mechanical, electrical etc) to
develop solutions (product or process) for wide variety of problems in biology.