Somaclonal variation in plant tissue culture: A review

Somaclonal variation is a form of variation which occur in plants or tissues obtained from tissue culture, giving rise to unique genotypes in horticulture. This variation is majorly brought about by mutations linked to various stress factors, including and not limited to wounding, residues of sterilants used during sterilization, incomplete tissues, and imbalances of media components, among others. This review aimed at outlining the basis and sources of somaclonal variation in tissue culture. Search engines including dimensions and google scholar, scientific journals from Wiley online and Elsevier, among others, were used to obtain information on somatic variation in tissue culture. The basis of somaclonal variation were found to be genetic and include changes in chromosome number, point mutations, Karyotype changes, among other factors. Somaclonal variation can be used to produce resistant plant varieties and unique horticultural plants among other uses. Even though somaclonal variation is a threat to the genetic stability of tissue culture plants, they also provide tools for improvement to plant breeders, especially for crops with a narrow genetic base. Key words: DNA, mutations, somaclonal variation, tissue culture, variants