And at a North Sacramento company, scientists have put a human gene into rice in hopes of creating a baby formula that fights infections. Biotechnology is sprouting all over greater Sacramento. Transgenesis is the transfer of one or more genes from one organism into another by nonsexual means. The foundation of modern biotechnology is deoxyribonucleic acid, or DNA, the genetic material that governs cell activity in all life forms. For example, scientists have used biotechnology to create crops that make their own pesticide and are resistant to herbicide.
Drug companies use related techniques to make pharmaceuticals from bacteria and cell cultures.
Some businesses are trying to make drugs from the milk of goats and eggs of chickens, and plastics and oils from plants instead of petroleum. Lau Several of the world's top biotech firms operate facilities in the region. Genentech and Chiron have plants in Vacaville. Affymetrix Inc., which makes computer-style chips coated with strands of DNA, is building a major manufacturing complex in West Sacramento. Seminis, the largest fruit and vegetable seed company in the world, has its research and development arm in Woodland.