LEVEL 01 · LESSON 03
What is an explant?
See it
An explant is the plant material selected to begin a culture. Depending on the plant and method, an explant may be a node, shoot tip, meristematic region, leaf piece, root piece, embryo, or other tissue. The exact source matters because different tissues can carry different contamination risks and regenerative capacities.
Understand it
Record species/cultivar and the exact tissue used, not only the common plant name.
Explant age, health, source environment, and developmental state can affect response.
A protocol for one explant type should not silently be applied to another.
Important boundary
“Blackberry” is not enough protocol context; cultivar, explant, and stage can matter.
Try it
Explain the concept in your own words, then identify what plant, explant, stage, units, source, or observation context would need to be preserved before applying it.
Lesson quiz
Apply it
Connect this lesson to an actual MyTCLab record: what fields would you need in order to know later exactly what happened and why?