Question

Concept of cellular totipotency was established by
A) White
B) Haberlandt
C) Steward
D) Muir

Answer 1

Hint: In 1902, the Totipotency theory was suggested by a German botanist. He said the whole plant body can be regenerated from any living cell of the plant body since it is obtained from the fertilised egg and includes genetic material.

Complete Answer:
- Totipotency is characterised as the ability of a single cell, to divide and generate all the differentiated cells in an organism.
- Totipotent cells are spores and zygotes produced during sexual and asexual reproduction. Cells are able to dedifferentiate and restore totipotency in some organisms.
- For example, in order to grow a whole plant, a plant cutting or callus would be used.
- Mammalian development starts when a sperm fertilizes an oocyte and forms a single layered embryo called the zygote.
- The zygote is totipotent, compatible with the concept, meaning that this single cell has the ability to grow into an embryo with all the specific cells that form a living being.
- Thus, each totipotent cell is a self-contained being who can give rise to the entire organism.

Now, let us find the solution from the options-
1) In 1939, Philip White identified a culture of plant tissue as a method in which cells satisfied two core requirements of remaining "undifferentiated and capable of unlimited growing." Therefore, the concept was not first established by White, so option (A) is incorrect.

2) From studies of plant regeneration from injured tissues, the totipotency and capacity of an organ or tissue to regenerate from a cell has been identified.
The German plant physiologist Haberlandt, who stated in 1902 that each plant cell had the genetic capacity to grow into a full organism, is credited with understanding this biological concept. Haberlandt expected that in culture, tissues, organs, and cells could be maintained.

3) F.E. Steward later in 1950 has been active in demonstrating cellular totipotency. Therefore, the concept was not first established by Steward, so option (C) is incorrect.

4) Muir, cited by Henshaw et al. (1982), was able to replenish plants from isolated cells in 1953, explaining the cellular totipotency theory. Therefore, the concept was not first established by Muir, so option (D) is incorrect.

Thus, the correct answer is option (B) Haberlandt.

Note: Gottlieb Haberlandt's first efforts were made in 1898 and 1902, but he did not succeed. Haberlandt failed because he ignored the observations of Henri-Louis Duhamel du Monceau (1700-1782), a French naval architect and agronomist who also studied wound healing in trees, who possibly has its origins rather than empirical fact in Gallic chauvinism. And there are also a couple of reasons why he failed.