Plant tissue culture is a technique used to grow plant
cells, tissues, or organs in a controlled, sterile
environment on a nutrient-rich medium. It is widely used
in plant research, propagation, and genetic engineering.
Key Principles of Plant Tissue Culture
1. Totipotency: The ability of a single plant cell to
regenerate into a whole plant.
2. Sterility: The culture medium and environment must
be free from microorganisms.
3. Nutrient Medium: A specific combination of macro-
and micronutrients, vitamins, carbon sources (e.g.,
sucrose), and plant growth regulators is used.
Steps in Plant Tissue Culture
1. Selection and Preparation of Explant:
An explant is the part of the plant used for culture (e.g.,
leaf, root, shoot tip).
, Explants are sterilized to remove contaminants.
2. Preparation of Nutrient Medium:
The medium (e.g., MS medium) contains:
Macronutrients: Nitrogen, potassium, phosphorus, etc.
Micronutrients: Zinc, copper, manganese, etc.
Vitamins: Thiamine, biotin, etc.
Carbon source: Sucrose or glucose.
Plant Growth Regulators (PGRs): Auxins (root growth)
and cytokinins (shoot growth).
3. Inoculation:
The explant is placed on the sterile medium under
aseptic conditions.
4. Incubation:
Cultures are incubated under controlled conditions
(temperature, light, and humidity).