Laboratory Facilities for PTC

Because plant tissue culture depends on maintaining strict aseptic and environmentally controlled conditions throughout, a dedicated laboratory needs several distinct functional spaces working together (Figure 5.2). A washing facility, together with ovens for drying glassware, keeps every vessel and tool free of residue and moisture before use. A medium preparation room houses the equipment needed to formulate and sterilize nutrient media accurately - an autoclave for heat sterilization, an electronic balance for weighing exact quantities of salts, sugars and hormones, and a pH meter to adjust the medium to its correct acidity. A sterile transfer area is where explants are actually handled and inoculated; it is fitted with a laminar air-flow bench and a positive-pressure ventilation system built around a High Efficiency Particulate Air (HEPA) filter, which together keep airborne microbes out of the workspace. Finally, the culture facility itself is where inocula …