Morphological analysis of English-language biotechnology terms of the genomic era

The relevance of this study is determined by the growing importance of English-language biotechnology terminology in the context of the rapid development of genomic technologies, which necessitates a systematic analysis of its morphological structure to enhance scientific communication and deepen the understanding of cognitive processes in term formation. The aim of the study was to analyse the morphological structure of English-language biotechnology terms of the genomic era through the lens of the cognitive approach. To achieve this goal, the following methods were used: lexicographic, morphological, and statistical analysis, elements of the cognitive approach to terminology research, as well as methods of systematisation and generalisation. It was found that English-language biotechnology terminology actively employs term formation models involving nouns, adjectives, and participles. The vast majority of terms are represented by nouns (N), with the most common being suffixal and prefix-suffixal formations, which together account for approximately 46% of the entire term base. The distribution of terms by conceptual categories within the N morphological model shows that the largest portion is made up of objects (54%)-key elements of biotechnology research such as genomes, proteins, and cells-followed by tools (19%)-modern methods, devices, and technologies-processes (17.2%)-dynamic actions such as sequencing or editing-and goals/results (9.8%)-final products or intended outcomes. Each of the analysed structures (N, N+N, A+N, A+A+N, A+A+A+N, V-ed+N, V-ing+N) was found to be associated with specific aspects of the conceptual domain: noun-based models predominantly represent the object of study (e.g., gene expression, protein synthesis), adjective-noun constructions typically refer to tools and characteristics of processes (e.g., synthetic genomic technologies), while participial forms verbalise the results of actions, altered states, or acquired properties resulting from biotechnological interventions (e.g., engineered organism, modified gene), as well as functional features of objects (e.g., binding protein, binding site, coding sequence). Morphological analysis revealed not only the structural features of terms, but also the underlying conceptual models that reflect the patterns of scientific thinking in biotechnology and the cognitive-linguistic specificity of this dynamic field. The practical significance of the study lies in the possibility of applying the obtained results in teaching English for specific purposes to students majoring in “Biotechnology and Bioengineering”