Real-Life Communication
Don't ignore your communication skills if you want to become a biotechnology
business developer. Preparing and delivering reports requires skills you'll
learn in English and the humanities.
"You will have to be able to communicate
well, both verbally and in writing," says biotechnology developer Ben Sutton.
Biotechnologists
at your lab are involved in genetically engineering plants. They're constantly
developing new disease-resistant, hardier strains of wheat. It's your task
to develop these ideas and find a market for them. However, you can't simply
be a salesperson or a business manager. You have to thoroughly understand
what it is the scientists are working on.
Genes are the basic building
block for animals and plants: they're what biotechnologists work with in order
to alter plant production. Often your clients are intrigued by the processes
and techniques used at your laboratory. They want to know about genetic engineering
and they want to know how genes work.
To simplify the complicated description
of genes, you usually use the example of a human's genetic make-up to explain.
You're speaking to a boardroom full of potential clients. Again, they want
to know what genes are. This is what you tell them:
I'll
use our own bodies as an example. How come I'm short and you're tall? Why
do I have brown hair and you have red? The answer lies in our genes, which
determine what sex we are and what traits we exhibit.
Your genetic
make-up is tucked inside almost every cell in your body. Inside the cell is
a nucleus. Inside this nucleus lie 46 chromosomes. If you could see your own
46 chromosomes magnified many times, you'd see that each consists of a single
cord of DNA. This cord is called a chromatin.
The chromatin is densely
packed with DNA molecules. Your DNA determines all of your traits and hereditary
information. It is your genetic blueprint. Each molecule of DNA consists of
two strands joined together in a geometric structure called the double helix.
Each strand of the double helix is joined together by a series of hydrogen
bonds. This makes the DNA look like a long spiral staircase.
Each strand
of the double helix is made up of four molecular subunits called nucleotides.
Each nucleotide contains a sugar, a phosphate and a nitrogen base. The sugars
and the phosphates join together to form the spiraling double spine of the
staircase. The nitrogen bases project between the two spines, forming what
looks like an endless flight of steps.
That is what your genes look
like. Any questions before I begin to tell you how they work?
Hands
shoot up into the air. This is complicated material, especially for people
who have no background in science. These are the questions the people ask
you:
- Where in the cell is DNA found?
- Is DNA in every cell or just one special cell?
- What is the part of the chromosome called that has the DNA in it?
- What is the double helix?
- What is the spine or banister of the DNA strand made up of?