Book excerpt: Plant cell culture techniques are used increasingly in basic research for plant exploitation in industry, including for example, genetic engineering and micropropagation. The rapidly developing role of plant cell culture has necessitated this new edition of a widely acclaimed book. It covers a wide range of methods central to the exploitation of plant cell cultures in fundamental and applied research. This thoroughly revised work retains the combination of giving and explaining the general principles involved with the concise description of specific protocols, with appeal to a broad readership, that made the first edition so successful. Internationally recognized experts describe the techniques used for isolating and manipulating cell cultures, and the central importance in plant biotechnology. The book will be of major interest to researchers in plant sciences in general, and specifically to botany, plant physiology, and biotechnology students.