Plant tissue culture is a revolutionary technique in plant biotechnology that allows the growth and multiplication of plant cells, tissues, or organs under controlled, sterile laboratory conditions on a nutrient medium.
This method is based on the totipotency of plant cells — the ability of a single cell to regenerate into a complete plant.
Plant tissue culture has wide-ranging applications in agriculture, horticulture, forestry, and research, making it an essential topic in NEET Biology and modern plant sciences.
Plant tissue culture involves growing plant tissues, such as explants (leaf, root, stem, or meristem), in a nutrient medium containing essential minerals, vitamins, carbohydrates, and plant growth regulators (e.g., auxins and cytokinins).
This medium provides all necessary conditions — pH, light, temperature, and hormones — required for plant cell division and differentiation.
Through tissue culture, scientists can quickly produce disease-free, genetically uniform, and mass-propagated plants, regardless of seasonal constraints.
The process involves several standardised stages:
Plant tissue culture has numerous scientific, agricultural, and industrial applications, which are detailed below.
Micropropagation is one of the most common applications of tissue culture. It allows the rapid production of large numbers of genetically identical plants (clones) from a single parent.
By culturing apical meristems (shoot tips), scientists can eliminate viruses and other pathogens, as these regions are typically free of infection.
For example:
Plant tissue culture plays a major role in conserving rare, endangered, or economically important plant species.
Example: Conservation of orchids, sandalwood, and medicinal plants through in vitro storage.
During tissue culture, spontaneous genetic variations can occur, known as somaclonal variations.
These variations can be helpful for:
Example: Sugarcane and wheat varieties have been improved using somaclonal variation techniques.
In this application, somatic (non-reproductive) cells are induced to form embryos that can develop into complete plants.
Somatic embryogenesis is used for:
Example: Used in coffee, carrot, and oil palm cultivation.
Plant tissue culture techniques enable the isolation of protoplasts — cells without cell walls.
These can be fused artificially to create somatic hybrids between different plant species or genera.
Applications include:
Example: Tomato × Potato hybrid (Pomato) created through somatic hybridisation.
Many plants produce valuable secondary metabolites, such as alkaloids, flavonoids, and terpenoids, which are used in pharmaceuticals and cosmetics.
Using tissue culture, these compounds can be produced in cell-suspension cultures under controlled laboratory conditions.
Examples:
This approach provides a sustainable, continuous supply of bioactive compounds without harming natural plant populations.
Applications:
Plant tissue culture provides a platform for introducing new genes into plants using techniques like Agrobacterium-mediated transformation or the gene gun method.
Once transformed, the tissues can regenerate into transgenic plants expressing the desired traits, such as:
Example: Development of Bt cotton and Golden rice through tissue culture-assisted transformation.
Somatic embryos or shoot buds produced through tissue culture can be encapsulated in a gel matrix to form synthetic seeds.
These can be easily stored, transported, and sown like normal seeds.
Synthetic seed technology aids in germplasm exchange and commercial plant production.
(Session 2026 - 27)