Cloning in plants
Cells from meristems can be cloningA scientific method by which genetically identical copies are made of animals or plants.. Meristematic cells are removed from a plant and grown in tissue cultureA technique where animal or plant cells or tissue are isolated and transferred to a sterile culture medium. If successful, the cells will continue to grow and divide, though not indefinitely.. The cells are grown in a culture mediumA gel or liquid used to grow microorganisms, or cells, tissues or organs. that contains agar gelA jelly-like substance that is derived from a type of seaweed and used in the lab as a medium on which to grow bacteria and fungi. 鈥 to provide support and water for the growing cells 鈥 along with nutrients and plant hormonesSubstances that can modify or control the growth of plants. to stimulate growth and cell division.
Plants are cloned to produce identical plants quickly and economically.
Producing new plants by cloning is quicker than allowing plants to reproduce and collecting and sowing seeds. It鈥檚 therefore an effective way of producing new individuals from rare and endangered plants, helping to preserve the species.
Clones will be genetically identical to the original plant providing the meristem cells. This is useful to provide crop plants for large-scale cultivation that have desirable characteristics such as disease resistance.
Tissue culture and cloning are important in growing identical plants produced by genetic engineeringProcess which involves the artificial transfer of genetic information from one donor cell or organism to another..
Cloning in plants also occurs naturally, for instance, in runnersA slender fast growing stem that grows horizontally over the soil surface and puts down roots to form new plants eg strawberry in strawberry plants. An older, simpler method of cloning plants that gardeners use to produce new, identical plants is by taking cuttingsPart of a plant stem, leaf, or root cut off and used for producing a new plant. An artificial propagation method..