GATE Syllabus for Biotechnology (BT) 2023: Important Topics, Exam Pattern, Previous Year Question Papers

Updated On - September 18th, 2024

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GATE Syllabus for Biotechnology (BT) 2023 consists of 6 core subjects, engineering mathematics and general aptitude. GATE Biotechnology 2023 is divided into three sections General Aptitude, Engineering Mathematics and Core Discipline. The Core Discipline of Biotechnology carries the maximum weightage that is 70%. The students are advised to read thoroughly the topics mentioned in the syllabus.CheckGATE 2023 CSE Exam Pattern

Important topics in GATE Biotechnology Syllabus 2023 include engineering Mathematics, Biotechnology, Recombinant DNA Technology, Transport Processes, Upstream and Downstream Processing etc. The candidates can select Biomedical/ Life Sciences (BM/ XL) as their second paper as GATE 2023 allows candidates to sit for a maximum of two papers. GATE Syllabus for Biotechnology (BT) 2023 will consist of questions from graduate level.CheckGATE 2023 Question Paper

Table of Contents

GATE Syllabus for Biotechnology 2023
GATE Syllabus for Biotechnology (BT) 2023 - Weightage
GATE Exam Pattern for Biotechnology (BT) 2023
GATE Marking Scheme for Biotechnology (BT) 2023
GATE Biotechnology Books 2023
GATE Biotechnology 2023 Previous Year Question Paper
GATE Sample Questions for Biotechnology (BT) 2023
GATE 2023 Syllabus Of Other Papers
GATE Syllabus for Biotechnology (BT) 2023 FAQs

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GATE Syllabus for Biotechnology

GATE Syllabus for Biotechnology (BT) 2023

GATE Biotechnology paper will have questions from topics:

Section 1 – Engineering Mathematics

Linear Algebra: Matrix algebra, systems of linear equations, consistency and rank, Eigen values and Eigen vectors.
Calculus: Mean value theorems, theorems of integral calculus, partial derivatives, maxima and minima, multiple integrals, Fourier series, vector identities, line, surface and volume integrals, Stokes, Gauss and Green’s theorems.
Differential equations: First order equation (linear and nonlinear), second order linear differential equations with constant coefficients, method of variation of parameters, Cauchy’s and Euler’s equations, initial and boundary value problems, solution of partial differential equations: variable separable method.
Analysis of complex variables: Analytic functions, Cauchy’s integral theorem and integral formula, Taylor’s and Laurent’s series, residue theorem, solution of integrals.
Probability and Statistics: Sampling theorems, conditional probability, mean, median, mode, standard deviation and variance; random variables: discrete and continuous distributions: normal, Poisson and binomial distributions.
Numerical Methods: Matrix inversion, solutions of nonlinear algebraic equations, iterative methods for solving differential equations, numerical integration, regression and correlation analysis.

Section 2 – General Biotechnology

Biochemistry: Biomolecules - structure and function; Biological membranes - structure, membrane channels and pumps, molecular motors, action potential and transport processes; Basic concepts and regulation of metabolism of carbohydrates, lipids, amino acids and nucleic acids; Photosynthesis, respiration and electron transport chain. Enzymes - Classification, catalytic and regulatory strategies; Enzyme kinetics - Michaelis-Menten equation; Enzyme inhibition - competitive, non-competitive and uncompetitive inhibition.
Microbiology: Bacterial classification and diversity; Microbial Ecology - microbes in marine, freshwater and terrestrial ecosystems; Microbial interactions; Viruses - structure and classification; Methods in microbiology; Microbial growth and nutrition; Nitrogen fixation; Microbial diseases and host-pathogen interactions; Antibiotics and antimicrobial resistance.
Immunology: Innate and adaptive immunity, humoral and cell mediated immunity; Antibody structure and function; Molecular basis of antibody diversity; T cell and B cell development; Antigen-antibody reaction; Complement; Primary and secondary lymphoid organs; Major histocompatibility complex (MHC); Antigen processing and presentation; Polyclonal and monoclonal antibody; Regulation of immune response; Immune tolerance; Hypersensitivity; Autoimmunity; Graft versus host reaction; Immunization and vaccines.

Section 3 – Genetics, Cellular, and Molecular Biology

Genetics and Evolutionary Biology: Mendelian inheritance; Gene interaction; Complementation; Linkage, recombination and chromosome mapping; Extra chromosomal inheritance; Microbial genetics - transformation, transduction and conjugation; Horizontal gene transfer and transposable elements; Chromosomal variation; Genetic disorders; Population genetics; Epigenetics; Selection and inheritance; Adaptive and neutral evolution; Genetic drift; Species and speciation.
Cell Biology: Prokaryotic and eukaryotic cell structure; Cell cycle and cell growth control; Cell-Genetics and Evolutionary Biology: Mendelian inheritance; Gene interaction; Complementation; Linkage, recombination and chromosome mapping; Extra chromosomal inheritance; Microbial genetics - transformation, transduction and conjugation; Horizontal gene transfer and transposable elements; Chromosomal variation; Genetic disorders; Population genetics; Epigenetics; Selection and inheritance; Adaptive and neutral evolution; Genetic drift; Species and speciation.
Molecular Biology: Molecular structure of genes and chromosomes; Mutations and mutagenesis; Regulation of gene expression; Nucleic acid - replication, transcription, splicing, translation and their regulatory mechanisms; Non-coding and microRNA; RNA interference; DNA damage and repair.

Section 4 – Fundamentals of Biological Engineering

Engineering principles applied to biological systems: Material and energy balances for reactive and non-reactive systems; Recycle, bypass and purge processes; Stoichiometry of growth and product formation; Degree of reduction, electron balance, theoretical oxygen demand.
Classical thermodynamics and Bioenergetics: Laws of thermodynamics; Solution thermodynamics; Phase equilibria, reaction equilibria; Ligand binding; Membrane potential; Energetics of metabolic pathways, oxidation and reduction reactions.
Transport Processes: Newtonian and non-Newtonian fluids, fluid flow - laminar and turbulent; Mixing in bioreactors, mixing time; Molecular diffusion and film theory; Oxygen transfer and uptake in bioreactor, kLa and its measurement; Conductive and convective heat transfer, LMTD, overall heat transfer coefficient; Heat exchangers

Section 5 – Bioprocess Engineering and Process Biotechnology

Bioreaction engineering: Rate law, zero and first order kinetics; Ideal reactors - batch, mixed flow and plug flow; Enzyme immobilization, diffusion effects - Thiele modulus, effectiveness factor, Damkoehler number; Kinetics of cell growth, substrate utilization and product formation; Structured and unstructured models; Batch, fed-batch and continuous processes; Microbial and enzyme reactors; Optimization and scale up.
Upstream and Downstream Processing: Media formulation and optimization; Sterilization of air and media; Filtration - membrane filtration, ultrafiltration; Centrifugation - high speed and ultra; Cell disruption; Principles of chromatography - ion exchange, gel filtration, hydrophobic interaction, affinity, GC, HPLC and FPLC; Extraction, adsorption and drying.
Instrumentation and Process Control: Pressure, temperature and flow measurement devices; Valves; First order and second order systems; Feedback and feed forward control; Types of controllers – proportional, derivative and integral control, tuning of controllers.

Section 6 – Plant, Animal and Microbial Biotechnology

Plants: Totipotency; Regeneration of plants; Plant growth regulators and elicitors; Tissue culture and cell suspension culture system - methodology, kinetics of growth and nutrient optimization; Production of secondary metabolites; Hairy root culture; Plant products of industrial importance; Artificial seeds; Somaclonal variation; Protoplast, protoplast fusion - somatic hybrid and cybrid; Transgenic plants - direct and indirect methods of gene transfer techniques; Selection marker and reporter gene; Plastid transformation.
Animals: Culture media composition and growth conditions; Animal cell and tissue preservation; Anchorage and non-anchorage dependent cell culture; Kinetics of cell growth; Micro & macro- carrier culture; Hybridoma technology; Stem cell technology; Animal cloning; Transgenic animals; Knock-out and knock-in animals.
Microbes: Production of biomass and primary/secondary metabolites - Biofuels, bioplastics, industrial enzymes, antibiotics; Large scale production and purification of recombinant proteins and metabolites; Clinical-, food- and industrial- microbiology; Screening strategies for new products.

Section 7 – Recombinant DNA technology and Other Tools in Biotechnology

Recombinant DNA technology: Restriction and modification enzymes; Vectors - plasmids, bacteriophage and other viral vectors, cosmids, Ti plasmid, bacterial and yeast artificial chromosomes; Expression vectors; cDNA and genomic DNA library; Gene isolation and cloning, strategies for production of recombinant proteins; Transposons and gene targeting;
Molecular tools: Polymerase chain reaction; DNA/RNA labelling and sequencing; Southern and northern blotting; In-situ hybridization; DNA fingerprinting, RAPD, RFLP; Site-directed mutagenesis; Gene transfer technologies; CRISPR-Cas; Biosensing and biosensors.
Analytical tools: Principles of microscopy - light, electron, fluorescent and confocal; Principles of spectroscopy - UV, visible, CD, IR, fluorescence, FT-IR, MS, NMR; Electrophoresis; Micro- arrays; Enzymatic assays; Immunoassays - ELISA, RIA, immunohistochemistry; immunoblotting; Flow cytometry; Whole genome and ChIP sequencing.
Computational tools: Bioinformatics resources and search tools; Sequence and structure databases; Sequence analysis - sequence file formats, scoring matrices, alignment, phylogeny; Genomics, proteomics, metabolomics; Gene prediction; Functional annotation; Secondary structure and 3D structure prediction; Knowledge discovery in biochemical databases; Metagenomics; Metabolic engineering and systems biology.

Section 8 - General Aptitude

Verbal Ability	Numerical Ability
English grammar; Sentence completion, Instructions; Verbal analogies, Word groups; Critical reasoning, Verbal deduction.	Numerical computation; Numerical reasoning; Numerical estimation; Data interpretation.

Direct link to download GATE Biotechnology (BT) Syllabus PDF

Weightage of Important Topics

GATE Biotechnology (BT) Weightage of Important Topics

Important Topics	Weightage (Marks)
General Aptitude	10
Engineering Mathematics	10-15
Plant and Animal Biotechnology	15-20
Bioprocess Engineering	10-15
Biotechnology	20-25

Exam Pattern for Biotechnology

GATE Exam Pattern for Biotechnology (BT) 2023

Mode of Examination: Online
Duration of exam: 3 hours
Type of questions: MCQs, MSQs, & NATs
Total Sections: 3 sections i.e. General Aptitude, Mathematics, Subject-based
Total questions: 65
Total marks: 100 marks
Negative marking: for MCQs only

Section	Distribution of Marks	Total Marks	Types of questions
General Aptitude	5 questions of 1 mark each 5 questions of 2 marks each	15 marks	MCQs
Subject Paper (BT) + Engineering Mathematics	25 questions of 1 mark each 30 questions of 2 marks each	85 marks	MCQs, MSQ and NATs

Marking Scheme for Biotechnology

GATE Marking Scheme for Biotechnology (BT) 2023

Type of question	Negative marking for wrong answer
MCQ	1/3 for 1 mark questions 2/3 for 2 marks questions
NAT/MSQ	No negative marking

Check Detailed GATE 2023 Exam Pattern

GATE Biotechnology Books

GATE Biotechnology Books 2023

Given below are the recommended books that would be beneficial in GATE Preparation.

Books	Author/Publisher
Biotechnology	Pranav Kumar
Principles of Biochemistry	Lehninger
Bioprocess Engineering Principles	P. Doran
GATE General Aptitude and Mathematics	GK Publishers
Molecular Cell Biology	lodish and Baltimore

Check GATE Cutoff for PSU Recruitment

Previous Year Question Paper

GATE Biotechnology (BT) Previous Year Question Paper

The students are advised to go through the following GATE Biotechnology 2023 Previous Year Question Paper along with their answer keys before appearing for the exam.

Year	Link for GATE Biotechnology Question Paper	Link for GATE Biotechnology Answer Key
2021	Check Here	Check Here
2020	Check Here	Check Here
2019	Check Here	Check Here
2018	Check Here	Check Here
2017	Check Here	Check Here

Sample Questions for Biotechnology

GATE Sample Questions for Biotechnology (BT)

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Ans. D

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Ans. D

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Ans. D

Also CheckGATE Mock Test 2023

GATE Syllabus Of Other Papers

GATE 2023 Syllabus Of Other Papers

Paper	Code	Paper	Code
Aerospace Engineering	AE	Mechanical Engineering	ME
Computer Science	CS	Metallurgical Engineering	MT
Civil Engineering	CE	Mining Engineering	MN
Chemical Engineering	CH	Petroleum Engineering	PE
Engineering Sciences	XE	Production and Industrial Engineering	PI
Electronics and Communication	EC	Textile Engineering and Fibre Science	TF
Electrical Engineering	EE	Biotechnology	BT

Biotechnology FAQs

GATE Syllabus for Biotechnology (BT) 2023 FAQs

Ques. What is the best study material to prepare for GATE 2023 Biotechnology Syllabus?

Ans: The best study material to prepare for GATE 2023 Biotechnology Syllabus is your notes or books from graduation because the syllabus will be based on graduation level. The authorities will release the syllabus and candidates must follow that syllabus only. Some of the important topics are:

General Biotechnology
Recombinant DNA Technology
Plant and Animal Biotechnology
Bioprocess Engineering and Process Biotechnology

Ques. GATE 2023 Biotechnology Syllabus will be divided into how many sections?

Ans: There will be 3 sections in GATE 2023 Biotechnology Syllabus:

General Aptitude – 15%
Engineering Mathematics – 13%
Core Subject – 72%

Ques. Will there be negative marking in GATE 2023 Biotechnology paper?

Ans: Yes, there will be negative marking in GATE 2023 Biotechnology paper:

Type of question	Negative marking for wrong answer
MCQ	1/3 for 1 mark questions 2/3 for 2 marks questions
NAT/MSQ	No negative marking

Ques. What is the subject code for GATE Biotechnology 2023?

Ans. The subject code for GATE Biotechnology 2023 is BT.

Ques. Which topic has the highest weightage in GATE Syllabus for Biotechnology (BT) 2023?

Ans. The topic with the highest weightage in GATE Syllabus for Biotechnology (BT) 2023 is Plant and Animal Biotechnology, as it is worth almost 15 to 20 marks.

Ques. What are the topics in General Biotechnology for GATE 2023?

Ans. The topics in General Biotechnology for GATE 2023

Biochemistry
Microbiology
Immunology

Ques. What is the syllabus for GATE General Aptitude 2023?

Ans. The syllabus for GATE General Aptitude is as follows:

Verbal Ability	Numerical Ability
English grammar; Sentence completion, Instructions; Verbal analogies, Word groups; Critical reasoning, Verbal deduction.	Numerical computation; Numerical reasoning; Numerical estimation; Data interpretation.

Ques. What is the syllabus for GATE Engineering Mathematics 2023?

Ans. The syllabus for GATE Engineering Mathematics is as follows:

Linear Algebra
Calculus
Differential Equations
Probability and Statistics
Numerical Methods

Ques. How many candidates clear for GATE Biotechnology 2023?

Ans. Around 21-30% candidates clear for GATE Petroleum.

GATE 2025 : 20 Answered QuestionsView All

• Top Answer By Pragya Tripathi on 20-Apr-2023

Ans. An MS from IIT Kanpur is considered to be a highly respected and prestigious degree. The MS program at IIT Kanpur is reputed for its focus on excellent research and its strong focus on practical, hands-on learning. As an MS student, you get to work with some of the most experienced and respected scholars and researchers in their fields, which gives an insight into the latest industry developments and trends. Additionally, not being located near metropolitan areas, IIT Kanpur gives a peaceful learning environment and students donâ€™t spend much time partying or clubbing. Although it is a 2-year program, with the right determination one can complete it in 18 months also. If you are true to your passion you can also complete a Ph.D. under an experienced thesis advisor and wonâ€™t have to go to a foreign university for a Ph.D. Overall, an MS from IIT Kanpur is a valuable and highly esteemed program that offers many opportunities in terms of career and professional advancement. Although it is challenging, the learning experience is worth the effort. Read more

1 Answer

• Top Answer By Prachi Sinha on 09-May-2022

Ans. Andhra University M.Tech admission is done in two ways, i.e. through GATE and through AP PGECET. To get admission, you need to have a valid GATE score or you need to score a valid rank in AP PGECET. Soon, Andhra University will release the notification for AP PGECET. Here are the tentative dates. Event Tentative dates Notification release date Second week of July 2022 Application form available Second week of July 2022 Admit card release date Second week of September 2022 Exam date Third week of September 2022 Result Second week of October 2022 Andhra University will release the application form online. Visit the official website of the institute regularly to get the updated information. Read more

2 Answers

• Top Answer By Aditi Gupta on 01-Apr-2022

Ans. Many GATE toppers leave PSU and join NITIE, instead of IITs because it offers better placements. Usually, students with good scores join ONGC, NTPC, BHEL, IOCL, and others. Despite the good salary, PSU jobs can get monotonous after a few years. So, the top rankers start looking for better career options. If they wish to do an MBA, they need to prepare for CAT. Some do prepare for CAT, but many join NITIE as it is an easier option. NITIE takes admission through GATE and the GATE score is valid for 3 years. So, they can easily get admission based on their GATE score. Also, the institute has a great placement record. During the NITIE Mumbai placement in 2022, the average CTC offered was INR 25.41 LPA. The video below will convince you further to join NITIE Mumbai Overall, its the excellent opportunities offered by NITIE that makes mant GATE toppers leave PSU and join NITIE Read more

2 Answers

• Top Answer By Subham Patra on 15-Jul-2022

Ans. Here are some strategies that can help you prepare for GATE and ESE simultaneously. Compare the syllabus of GATE and ESE. Go through the previous years' questions of both. The technical portion of both examinations overlaps a lot. The major difference is question patterns and styles. Different types of questions are asked on the same topics. GATE tests aptitude for solving technical questions. While ESE puts more emphasis on technical details. Figure out which subjects contribute more to which examinations. If you have less time, start with GATE preparation. The topics can be covered easily and in less time. Once you are through GATE preparation, you can solve ESE questions without much difficulty. Focus on GATE and ESE preparations only. First, go through the syllabus thoroughly. Once you are done with the syllabus, go through your notes and solve previous years' questions. Solve test series, and review hard questions. Analyze the tests you give and work on your mistakes. Read more

2 Answers

• Top Answer By Dishi Mishra on 15-Jul-2022

Ans. GATE consists mostly of numerical questions. It tests the aptitude for solving questions in less time. BITS HD papers have 10-15 numerical questions usually. The numerical questions aren’t on the same level as GATE and are just formula-based problems. Usually, around 80-90% of BITS HD questions are theory oriented. You need to have a good grasp of your engineering subjects to score well in BITS HD. The questions can come from anywhere in the syllabus. BITS HD usually consists - 15 Mathematics questions (difficulty usually higher than GATE) 15 general English questions 70 Engineering discipline questions Also, note that BITS take admission based on GATE scores as well. Read more

2 Answers

• Top Answer By Lorina on 27-Feb-2023

Ans. The required GATE rank depends upon various parameters like The engineering branch Company (PSU) Number of vacancies for the stream People who are graduating in 3-4 years are lucky as both IOCL and ONGC are planning to recruit in bulk because of massive retirements in both the companies. The mechanical and chemical branches are expected to have the most vacancies. Candidates will be called in a 1:5 ratio and thus, interviews will be the major determining factor of your selection. If you are unable to showcase your knowledge and talent during the interview, even a single-digit rank cannot guarantee your admission. A minimum of 40% marks are required to pass the interview. So if you get a call for the interview, donâ€™t let your rank discourage you or even make you overconfident. Read more

3 Answers

• Top Answer By Ankita Sinha on 07-Oct-2020

Ans. Sikkim Manipal University has been ranked at 17 for Private Engineering by India Today in 2020. The largest department within the institution is the CSE department and it has also won the best department in SMIT multiple times. Admissions: Class 12th with mandatory subjects in Physics, Maths, Chemistry/computer science/biology is the prerequisite for admission to CSE at Sikkim Manipal. SMIT online, MET, JEE Mains is the examinations accepted for BTech admission. The total intake for CSE is 180 and the course fee is 12.20 lakhs. Curriculum: The University offers a well-structured and detailed curriculum with exposure to major areas of computer science like Big data analytics, robotics, cloud computing, ethical hacking, and more. The course structure focuses on providing students with knowledge of the core subjects of computer science in order to strengthen their foundation and make them industry-ready. Faculty: The university has 33 highly experienced and qualified faculties for CS. The faculty members also conduct seminars and workshops with esteemed institutions like ISRO, IIT, and TIFR. Infrastructure: The University offers a great infrastructure for the CSE department as it receives funding from two highly esteemed agencies, AICTE and ISRO. There are nine state-of-the-art practical labs like the Networking lab, digital circuit and microprocessor labs, GIS and remote sensing lab, advanced programming lab, and more. It also has a huge library with over 2500 journals and books dedicated to the CSE branch. It has been updated with modern facilities and infrastructure all across the campus in order to provide students with the best experience. Placements: AGS Infotech, Amazon, Britannia, Cipla, Capgemini are some of the major recruiters at the institute. Placement Rate within CSE 92.5% Lowest CTC 3.5 LPA Average CTC 5 LPA Highest CTC 18 LPA Sikkim Manipal University is a great option for students who want to pursue a BTech degree program in the CSE department. Read more

1 Answer

• Top Answer By Harshita Sinha on 15-Jul-2022

Ans. It depends on your career goals. GATE offers more options for engineering students. It is an all-around examination. You can go for MTech, PSUs, MS, and FRM. If you want more options, GATE will be better for you. If you want to do an MBA, after graduation, CAT will be the better option. Almost all top B-Schools accept CAT scores for MBA. Read more

2 Answers

• Top Answer By Ashish Gupta on 15-Apr-2023

Ans. IIT Roorkee admission 2023 hasnâ€™t been wrapped up yet, hence its GATE cutoff too hasnâ€™t been released as of now. M.Tech admission process of IIT Roorkee is conducted on the basis of the GATE cutoff, and all the candidates applying for admission into the M.Tech course under the non-sponsored category will be required to clear the cutoff for admission. The cutoff scores for M.Tech admission at IIT Roorkee for 2022 and 2021 have not been disclosed by the admission authority. Letâ€™s consider GATE 2020 cutoff for a slight idea. Category GATE 2020 Cutoff General 77.1 EWS 79.1 OBC 72.32 SC 58.62 ST 61.33 Read more

1 Answer

• Top Answer By Radhika Srivastava on 11-Apr-2023

Ans. First of all, admission to the IIT Roorkee MTech program is not given on the basis of GATE rank. The final shortlisting is done on the basis of Normalized GATE marks were used which is calculated by IIT Roorkee as follows: Normalized GATE marks = Normalized marks out of 100 or Marks*100\Maximum marks awarded in the paper that year For example if a candidate has scored 64 marks and the maximum marks given that year are 92, the Normalized GATE marks are 64*100/92=69.57. The table below comprises the expected GATE 2023 cut-off for IIT Roorkee based on the previous year's cut-off trends. MTech Course Cutoff Alternate Hydro Energy Centre 760-839 Architecture & Planning 650-844 Biotechnology 570-577 Civil Engineering 656-780 Chemical Engineering 650-657 Computer Science & Engineering 840-844 Disaster Mitigation & Management 700-710 Electronics and Communication Engineering 736-750 Electrical Engineering 760-779 Mechanical and Industrial Engineering 748-785 Read more

1 Answer

*The article might have information for the previous academic years, which will be updated soon subject to the notification issued by the University/College

Table of Contents

GATE Syllabus for Biotechnology (BT) 2023: Important Topics, Exam Pattern, Previous Year Question Papers