What term describes the use of living systems or organisms to develop or make useful products?

The term that describes the use of living systems or organisms to develop or make useful products is biotechnology. Biotechnology encompasses a wide range of processes and techniques that utilize biological organisms, cells, and cellular materials to create products or technologies that can benefit various sectors, including medicine, agriculture, and environmental management.

Biotechnology integrates knowledge from disciplines like genetics, microbiology, and biochemistry to manipulate living organisms at a molecular level. This includes techniques such as genetic engineering, fermentation technology, and tissue culture, which are all aimed at producing beneficial outcomes, such as genetically modified crops, pharmaceuticals, and biofuels.

Other fields like genetics, molecular biology, and cell biology provide foundational knowledge and tools that are essential in biotechnology. Genetics focuses specifically on heredity and variation in organisms, while molecular biology examines the molecular mechanisms of biological activity between biomolecules in the various systems of a cell. Cell biology studies the structural and functional units of life. However, none of these fields encompass the broader application and impact of using living systems and organisms in product development as defined by biotechnology.