In the last few decades, the flow of biological discovery has swelled from a trickle into a torrent, driven by a number of new methodologies developed in plant tissue culture, recombinant DNA technology, monoclonal antibodies and micro chemical instrumentation [1]Biological research has been transformed from a collection of single discipline endeavors into an interactive science with bridges between numbers of traditional disciplines. This synergy has made biology the “sunrise field” of the new millennium. The whole gamut of new discoveries in biology and allied sciences can be grouped together under a single umbrella term of “Biotechnology”.
Biotechnology has been defined as “any technique that uses living organisms, or substances from these organisms, to make or modify a product, to improve plants or animals, or to develop microorganisms for specific uses” [2]. No society has advanced without deploying appropriate technology in place to set the pace for addressing its major problems. Public investment in relevant technology, the application to industries and capturing of the benefit accrue to it is what sets developed nations apart. Previous reports have shown that there is no National economic growth without proper investment in a right technology which is applied in a Nation. Real solutions to priority on national problems like job creation and poverty alleviation is investment in appropriate technology. This is evident in countries that embraced and adopted biotechnology in past technological revolutions and are practicing on an unprecedented scale. Such countries like
India, Cuba and South Africa. The application of biotechnology has greater opportunities for developing countries than previous technologies i.e. greater comparative advantages[3]. Agricultural biotechnology addresses issues such as the production of disease resistant, high yielding and very profitable agricultural ventures in both plants and animals. The world population has grown tremendously over the past two thousand years. In 1999, the world population passed the six billion mark. Latest official current world population estimate, for mid-year 2011, is estimated at 7 billion [4]. The population increase in developing countries constitutes 97% of the global increase [5], and it is estimated that by 2050, 90% of the planet’s population will reside in the developing countries of the southern hemisphere. The challenge for the future, therefore, lies in global food security that necessitates a doubling of food production in the next 50 years to meet the needs of the population [6]. Most developing countries yet to fulfill their food production potentials; are especially vulnerable in terms of food security. Plant biotechnology plays a key role in complementing other factors necessary for the improvement of crop production such as the use of agrochemicals, irrigation, plant breeding and farm management to address food security. Plant biotechnology, has three broad fields of study. They include plant tissue culture, genetic engineering and plant molecular markers. These applications range from the simple to the sophisticated and in many cases have been appropriate for use in developing countries [2]. For example, biotechnology techniques such as plant tissue culture have been utilized appropriately for many agronomic and food crops to provide more food and planting materials for farmers.
Micropropagation, popularly known for large-scale clonal propagation, is the first major and widely accepted practical application of plant biotechnology. It is described as the in vitro initiation of plant culture, propagation, and rooting under controlled environmental conditions for ex vitro establishment in the soil. New contributions to in vitro techniques for plant propagation in the last decade have simplified micropropagation technology [7]. This covers a wide range of plants including Agronomic species, economic and forest trees.
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