To Be or Not to Be

Somatic embryogenesis (SE) is a process encompassing agglomeration of specific genetic factors that upon stimulation affect the physiology and morphology of plants in such a way that the differentiation capacity of plant tissue changes. The revamping of the genomic profile of the plant during SE is also influenced by epigenetic factors. These factors regulate the expression of SE-associated genes such as SERK , LEC , and BBM for the development of embryos from differentiated somatic tissues. The genes are considered as markers of embryogenic competence because these influence the rate of somatic embryo production. In recent years, genomic and transcriptomic studies have made a huge impact in understanding the finespun network of genes and proteins during SE. Moreover, the importance of epigenetic factors such as methylation and demethylation during SE has also come to light. So, it becomes very important to understand and decipher these factors as these alter the epigenomic profile of the plants by changing the methylation levels of DNA, and these changes at either nucleotide or genomic level can be studied through a number of techniques such as bisulphite sequencing, immunofluorescence, methylation-sensitive amplified polymorphism, and high-performance liquid chromatography.