Plant Tissue Culture Project

Original Power Point Presentation by Paige and Elisa

Modified by GA Agricultural Education Curriculum Office

July 2002

What is Plant Tissue Culture?

Plant tissue culture is a form of asexual

propagation of plants under laboratory
conditions.

Why is Plant Tissue Culture Important?

It has made significant contributions in:

The production of plant material
Plant breeding
Gene banks
The production of chemical compounds

How is Plant Tissue Culture Done?

It is grown on a special culture medium

which supports its growth and
development.
The medium can be either semisolid,
such as agar, or liquid, such as purified
water.

Microorganisms and Plant Tissue Culture

In the practice of plant tissue culture,

microorganisms are called contaminants
because of their harmful effects on plant
growth in vitro.
Six potential sources of contamination in the
plant tissue culture lab are:

Air
Water
Growth Media
People
Equipment
Plant Material

Experiment One: Description

A one dollar bill was cut in half and

placed in two different petri dishes.
Dollar 1 was placed in a room at 100
F.
Dollar 2 was placed in a room at room
temperature.

Experiment One: results

Day 1: Dollar 1

No visible change.

Day 2: Dollar 1

Bacteria begin to
develop around the
edges of the dish.

Day 3: Dollar 1

Bacteria develop
rapidly covering
most of the dish.

Day 6: Dollar 1

Bacteria cover the

entire dollar and
dish.

Day 7: Dollar 1

The bacteria
continue to spread,
and the nutrient
agar has begun to
dissolve.

Day 1: Dollar 2

No visible change.

Day 2: Dollar 2

Bacteria begin to
develop in the
middle of the dollar;
although
development is not
as rapid as in Dollar
1.

Day 3: Dollar 2

The bacteria have

spread to the edges
of the dollar.

Day 6: Dollar 2

The bacteria cover

the majority of the
bill.

Day 7: Dollar 2

The entire dollar is

covered with
bacteria.

Results

The bacteria on dollar 1 developed at a

more rapid pace; however, the agar
dissolved due to the high temperatures.
The bacteria on dollar 2 developed at a
slower pace in the beginning of the
experiment, but dollar 2 contained more
bacteria than dollar 1 at the conclusion.

Experiment 2: Description

A throat culture was taken from two

different people at the same time.
Mouth 1 was taken from a person with
flu-like symptoms.
Mouth 2 was taken from a healthy
person.

Experiment two: results

Day 1: Mouth 1

The bacteria have

grown slightly and
exhibit a faint
yellowish color.

Day 2: Mouth 1

The bacteria have

grown considerably
and can be seen
with the naked eye.

Day 3: Mouth 1

The bacteria are

spreading.

Day 6: Mouth 1

The bacteria have

grown considerably:
yellowish colored
spots are beginning
to form.

Day 7: Mouth 1

The bacteria are still

growing at a rapid
pace and can now
be seen easily
without a
microscope.

Day 1: Mouth 2

Very little bacteria

have formed.

Day 2: Mouth 2

The bacteria begin

to grow but cannot
be seen without a
microscope.

Day 3: Mouth 2

The bacteria are

now growing rapidly,
and small yellowish
spots slightly visible
to the naked eye are
beginning to form.

Day 6: Mouth 2

The bacteria have

grown gradually,
and are easier to
see with the naked
eye.

Day 7: Mouth 2

The bacteria are

growing slowly, but
the small, yellowish
spots appear
clearly.

Results

The mouth 1 culture grew a larger

amount of bacteria at a faster rate than
the mouth 2 culture.
Mouth 2, however, did begin to grow
towards the end of the experiment.