The seas supported the earliest life on earth. They cover three-quarters of the surface of our planet, harbor more than 80 percent of all life on Earth, and remain our greatest untapped natural resource. Scientists at COMB are applying the tools of biotechnology to gain a better understanding of the basic genetics of marine animals, algae, and microorganisms-the key to rapid advances in marine biotechnology.
COMB research focuses on the molecular and genetic control of marine biological systems.
Significantly, biotechnology allows us to tap the potential of the oceans without depleting them as a resource. Instead, the tools of biotechnology allow researchers to clone the genes, reproduce them, and produce desired substances in the laboratory, leaving the organisms where they belong-in the environment.