Syllabus
Theory
Introduction to Plant Tissue Culture and Genetic Engineering: History; Cellular tot potency and cytodifferentiation; Callus culture, Single-cell/suspension culture and their applications; Organogenesis and somatic embryogenesis; Somaclonal variation and its use in crop improvement; Embryo rescue technique and its significance in hybrid development; In vitro fertilization, ovule culture and its significance in hybrid development; Protoplast isolation, culture and regeneration; Somatic hybridization (somatic hybrids and cybrids) and its application in crop improvement; Anther and pollen culture for haploid production; Development of disease-free (virus free) plants through apical meristem culture; Micropropagation technique for the generation of quality planting material; Synthetic seeds and its applications; National certification and Quality management of TC plants-secondary metabolite production- in vitro germplasm conservation. Introduction to Molecular Biology: DNA structure, structure and function; DNA replication, transcription and translation, RNA, types and function; Structure of prokaryotic and eukaryotic gene; Central dogma of life – DNA replication, transcription, genetic codes translation and protein synthesis; Lac Operon concept – Nucleic acid hybridization; Polymerase chain reaction- DNA sequencing – Sanger method; PCR and its applications. Introduction to recombinant DNA technology: DNA modifying enzymes and vectors; plant genetic transformation – physical (Gene gun method), chemical (PEG mediated) and Agrobacterium-mediated gene transfer methods; Transgenic and its importance in crop improvement with successful stories; biosafety. Introduction to various molecular markers: RFLP, RAPD, SSR, SNP etc.; Marker-assisted breeding in crop improvement.
Practical
Introduction to Plant Tissue Culture Laboratory; Good Laboratory Practices; Media Preparation and sterilization; Glassware sterilization; Micropropagation; Callus induction and culture; Anther culture; Apical meristem culture; Preparation of synthetic seeds; Isolation of plasmid DNA; Quantification of DNA; Agarose Gel Electrophoresis and visualization of plasmid DNA; Restriction digestion of plasmid DNA and agarose gel electrophoresis; Isolation of Plant genomic DNA; PCR amplification of DNA; Gel electrophoresis of amplified DNA; Visit to tissue culture units /biotech labs.