ABSTRACT
Although the first attempts to establish plant cell cultures were made by the German botanist G. Haberlandt at the turn of this century, the earli est successes in inducing sustained growth of plant cells in culture were made in the 1930s. These advances were followed by the development of aseptic techniques and complex nutrient media. All this knowledge, com bined with the discovery of plant growth regulators and their profound ef fects on morphogenesis, has led to regeneration of plants from cultured cells and tissues from a wide variety of plants. In fact, the application of micropropagation in plant production has become a multibillion dollar in dustry for nurseries and commercial centers world-wide. Plant cell and tissue cultures have been used as experimental systems for physiological, biochemical, genetical and molecular studies in order to increase our knowledge on plant cell biology. Today, tissue culture techniques have been largely integrated in biotechnology and have made possible the re generation of plants as clones, somaclones and transgenics.
