Question

What is the major advantage of producing plants by micropropagation?

Answer 1

Micropropagation is the process of producing thousands of plants through tissue culture. Each plant in this process is genetically identical to the original plant from which it originated. They are known as somaclones. Most of the important food plants, like tomatoes, bananas, apples, etc., have been produced on a commercial scale using this method.

This method can prepare thousands of plants in a very short period. Another important application of this method is recovering healthy plants from diseased plants. The virus infects the plant, but the meristem (apical and axillary) remains free. Therefore, scientists separate and cultivate the meristem in vitro to create virus-free plants. Scientists have succeeded in culturing meristems of banana, sugarcane, potato, etc.

Scientists have even isolated single cells from plants and, after digesting their cell walls, have been able to isolate naked protoplasts (surrounded by plasma membranes). Researchers can fuse isolated protoplasts from two different varieties of plants, each with a desirable character, to create hybrid protoplasts that can be further grown into a new plant. We refer to these hybrids as somatic hybrids and the process as somatic hybridization.

Answer 2

The major advantage of producing plants by micropropagation is that the plants produced are virus-free and genetically identical, and a large number of plants can be produced in a very short period. This technique ensures rapid propagation and disease-free planting material.