About Lesson
- Modern plant tissue culture is performed under aseptic conditions.
- Living plant materials from the environment are naturally contaminated on their surfaces (and sometimes interiors) with microorganisms, so surface sterilization of starting material (explants) in chemical solutions (usually alcohol and sodium or calcium hypochlorite is required).
- Explants are placed on the surface of a solid culture medium, but are sometimes placed directly into a liquid medium, when cell suspension cultures are desired.
- Culture media are generally composed of inorganic salts plus a few organic nutrients, vitamins and plant hormones.