Modern biology, biochemistry, and genetics were fundamentally changed in 1973 when Stanley N. Cohen, Herbert W. Boyer, Annie C. Y. Chang, and Robert B. Helling developed a technique for transferring DNA, the molecular basis of heredity, between unrelated species. Not only was DNA propagation made possible among different bacterial species, but successful gene insertion from animal cells into bacterial cells was also accomplished. Their discovery, called recombinant DNA or genetic engineering, introduced the world to the age of modern biotechnology.

As with any revolutionary discovery, the benefits of this new technology were both immediate and projected. Immediate gains were made in the advancement of fundamental biology by increasing scientists' knowledge of gene structure and function. This knowledge promised new ways to overcome disease, increase food production, and preserve renewable resources. For example, the use of recombinant DNA methodology to overcome antibiotic resistance on the part of bacteria anticipated the...