“Give me a living cell of any plant and I will give you a thousand plants of the same type” Is this only a slogan or is it scientifically possible? Write your comments and justify them.

The above statement is scientifically possible too.

Explanation:

• Tissue culture is the method through which we can produce thousands of plants of same type by a single cell.

• In this, an explants or any part of the plant is selected and is grown in test tube.

• The growth takes place under sterile conditions in special nutrient medium which contains carbon source, inorganic salts, amino acids, vitamins and other growth regulators.

• A whole plant can be generated from a single plant cell or an explant. This property is known as totipotency.

• Through totipotency a large number of plant can be produced which are genetically identical to the original plant from which they have been produced. Hence, they are known as somaclones and the method is known as micro-propagation.