Somatic embryogenesis is an artificial process in which a plant embryo is derived from a single somatic cell. Somatic embryos are formed from plant cells that are not normally involved in the development of embryos, i.e. ordinary plant tissue. No endosperm or seed coat is formed around a somatic embryo.

Cells derived from competent source tissue are cultured to form an undifferentiated mass of cells called a callus. Plant growth regulators (PGRs) in the tissue culture medium can be manipulated to induce callus formation and subsequently changed to induce embryos to form the callus. The ratio of different plant growth regulators required to induce callus or embryo formation varies with the type of plant. Somatic embryos are mainly produced in vitro for laboratory research, using either solid or liquid nutrient media containing plant growth regulators. The main PGRs used are auxins but cytokinins may also be present in smaller amounts. Shoots and roots are monopolar while somatic embryos are bipolar, allowing them to form a whole plant without culturing on multiple media types. Somatic embryogenesis has served as a model of the physiological and biochemical events that occur during plant developmental processes and has also played a role in biotechnological advancement. The first documentation of somatic embryogenesis was by Steward et al. in 1958 and Reinert in 1959 with carrot cell suspension cultures.

Somatic embryogenesis has been described to occur in two ways: directly and indirectly. Direct embryogenesis occurs when embryos are started directly from explant tissue without the formation of callus from the explant, creating an identical clone.

Indirect embryogenesis occurs when explants produce undifferentiated or partially differentiated cells (often referred to as callus) which then is maintained or differentiated into mature plant tissues such as leaf, stem, or roots. 2,4-Dichlorophenoxyacetic acid (2,4-D), 6-Benzylaminopurine (BAP) and Gibberellic acid (GA) has been used for development of indirect somatic embryos in strawberry (Fragaria ananassa)

Plant regeneration via somatic embryogenesis occurs in five steps: initiation of embryogenic cultures, proliferation of embryogenic cultures, prematuration of somatic embryos, maturation of somatic embryos and plant development on nonspecific media. Initiation and proliferation occur on a medium rich in auxins, which induces differentiation of localized meristematic cells. The auxin typically used is 2,4-D. Once transferred to a medium with low or no auxin, these cells can then develop into mature embryos. Germination of the somatic embryo can only occur when it is mature enough to have functional root and shoot apices.

Factors and mechanisms controlling cell differentiation in somatic embryos are relatively ambiguous. Certain compounds excreted by plant tissue cultures and found in culture media have been shown necessary to coordinate cell division and morphological changes. These compounds have been identified by Chung et al. as various polysaccharides, amino acids, growth regulators, vitamins, low molecular weight compounds and polypeptides. Several signaling molecules known to influence or control the formation of somatic embryos have been found and include extracellular proteins, arabinogalactan proteins and lipochitooligosaccharides. Temperature and lighting can also affect the maturation of the somatic embryo.

Applications of this process include: clonal propagation of genetically uniform plant material; elimination of viruses; provision of source tissue for genetic transformation; generation of whole plants from single cells called protoplasts; development of synthetic seed technology.

The development of somatic embryogenesis procedures has given rise to research on seed storage proteins (SSPs) of woody plants for tree species of commercial importance, i.e., mainly gymnosperms, including white spruce. In this area of study, SSPs are used as markers to determine the embryogenic potential and competency of the embryogenic system to produce a somatic embryo biochemically similar to its zygotic counterpart (Flinn et al. 1991, Beardmore et al. 1997).