View source for Biological Technologies Office (DARPA)

The '''Biological Technologies Office''' ('''BTO''') is one of the seven technical offices within [[DARPA]], an agency of the [[United States Department of Defense|U.S. Department of Defense]] that is responsible for the development of advanced technology for [[national security]]. BTO was created in 2014 by combining some programs from the [[Defense Sciences Office|Defense Sciences Office (DSO)]] and the [[Microsystems Technology Office|Microsystems Technology Office (MTO)]].<ref>{{Cite journal|last1=Klabukov|first1=Ilya|last2=Alekhin|first2=Maksim|last3=Nekhina|first3=Anastasiya|date=2014|title=Review of DARPA FY 2015 Research Programs|journal=Innovation Practice eJournal|location=Rochester, NY|volume=2|issue=11|doi=10.2139/ssrn.2439081|url=https://hal.archives-ouvertes.fr/hal-01831414/file/SSRN-id2439081_DARPA.pdf}}</ref> The office focuses on basic and [[applied research]] in the areas of [[Genetic engineering|gene editing]], [[Biotechnology|biotechnologies]], [[neuroscience]]s and [[synthetic biology]] — from powered exoskeletons for soldiers to brain implants that can control mental disorders.<ref name=":0" /><ref>{{Cite journal|last=Laursen|first=Lucas|date=2014-06-09|title=DARPA redesign|journal=Nature Biotechnology|language=En|volume=32|issue=6|pages=509|doi=10.1038/nbt0614-509|doi-access=free}}</ref>

DARPA’s embrace of bioscience began in earnest in 2001, when anthrax spores posted to media offices and members of the [[United States Congress|US Congress]] brought concerns about [[bioterrorism]] to the fore. Then came the [[War in Afghanistan (2001–present)|wars in Afghanistan]] and [[Iraq War|Iraq]], which led the agency to invest in fields such as neuroscience, psychology and [[Brain–computer interface|brain-computer interfaces]] — all with the intention of helping injured veterans. By 2013, the number of biology-related programmes had grown such that DARPA decided to consolidate them under one roof.<ref name=":0">{{Cite journal|last=Reardon|first=Sara|date=2015|title=The military-bioscience complex|journal=Nature|language=en|volume=522|issue=7555|pages=142–144|doi=10.1038/522142a|pmid=26062493|doi-access=free}}</ref>