Publication Date: 2025
Journal Of Applied Biotechnology Reports (23221186)12(2)pp. 1622-1630
Introduction: Despite the expansion and development of the field of biotechnology, concerns persist regarding the risks and dangers associated with this sector. The aim of the current research was to prioritize and manage the risks in Iran's biotechnology sector. Materials and Methods: The Meta Synthesis Model (qualitative), Kappa coefficient calculation, and Delphi technique (quantitative) were utilized in this study to identify biotechnological risks. The research encompassed all articles published in English from 2012 to 2022. The Delphi technique engaged experts in biotechnology who were well-versed in risk management. To determine the study population, all researchers in relevant subject areas were identified, and four were selected through purposive sampling. Results: Based on published sources, 56 risks were identified in the field of biotechnology. Using the Shannon entropy method and eval uating the frequency of these risks, 34 were classified as high-priority. The findings indicated that the most significant challenge in biotechnology pertains to the risks associated with human exposure to products contaminated by toxins and biotechnological pollution, which could potentially enter the human body. Therefore, human health emerged as the most critical risk. Furthermore, the results from the fuzzy Delphi technique emphasized that the highest-scoring biotechnological risk in Iran involved human exposure to products affected by toxins and biotechnological pollution. Conclusions: Through pairwise comparison of criteria by experts, it was revealed that challenges related to water and marine resources are among the most important biotechnological risks, with health and medical issues closely following. © 2025 The Author(s).
