Blog #1

What is biochemistry, and how does it differ from the fields of genetics, biology, chemistry, and molecular biology?


Biochemistry is the study of the chemistry of our biological systems, specifically focusing on the enzyme reactions that take place and the chemistry of the protein structures explored. Biochemistry differs from the field of genetics, biology, chemistry, and molecular biology but can also be related to all of these fields of study because of the subject matter that it explores. A more in-depth explanation of the focuses of these studies is as follows.
Genetics: At times, microbiology can be considered a specialization within the field of genetics. The field of genetics deals with anything that has to do with genes and genetic DNA, and can include alteration of genetic material to further investigate or understand specific genes.
Biology: Biology is a field which deals with the study of life and living organisms, including their structure, function, growth and development, evolution, and distribution. This field of study is closely related to biochemistry but explores a wider realm of organisms within specific systems in both plants and animals.
Microbiology: Microbiology can be considered a part of the Genetics field because it can be defined similarly to the above definition for Biology but micro implies that the scientists in this field deal with microscopic living organisms.
Chemistry: The field of chemistry involves using chemical experiments and techniques to manipulate certain biological systems. Chemistry can pertain to both inorganic or organic (carbon-containing) compounds and explores their reactions with biological systems. Organic chemistry is indeed its own specific field that focuses on only carbon-containing compounds.