Vitamins

Deficiency diseases

Retinol
(Vit. A)

Retardation of growth, dryness of skin, less resistance to infections and night-blindness.

Thiamine
(Vit. B1)

Loss of appetite, gastrointestinal disorders, muscular weakness, low blood pressure etc.

Riboflavin
(Vit. B2)

Inflammation of tongue, cracking of lips and corners of mouth, etc.

Cyanocobalamine
(Vit. B12)

Pernicious anaemia which is accompanied by the degradation of the spinal cord.

Ascorbic acid
(Vit. C)

Scurvy and brittleness of bones; gums bleed and teeth become loose.

Calciferol
(Vit. D)

Causes rickets

Phylloquinone and Farnoquinone
(Vit. K)

Delays the clotting of blood.

(1) Biotechnology is the use of living organisms or substances obtained from them in the industrial processes using scientific and engineering technology. (2) In the recent few decades, biotechnology has brought revolutions in medical, agricultural and industrial fields. (3) Fermentation of organic compounds by micro-organisms produces various useful products such as antibiotics, vitamins, alcohol, amino acids, proteins, carbohydrates, and enzymes. (4) Fermentation industry fully exploits this microbial activity. (5) By using improved and highly efficient strains of micro-organisms and employing modern biotechnological principles, the industrial yield of fermentation products has been increased by a great deal. (6) Fermentation activity of micro-organisms is also used for industrial production of alcohol, vitamins (e.g. cyanocobalamin (Vitamin B-12), riboflavin (Vitamin B-2), etc.) (7) Sophisticated and technologically modern bio-reacters (i.e. fermenter tanks) are used for the synthesis of fermentation products.