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In vitro
 
 
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In vitro (Latin for within the glass) refers to the technique of performing a given procedure in a controlled environment outside of a living organism
Organism

In biology, an organism is any life thing . In at least some form, all organisms are capable of response to stimulus , reproduction, growth and developmental biology, and maintenance of homeostasis as a stable whole....
. Some may argue that in vitro refers to a process that is created in a "test tube
Test tube

A test tube, also known as a culture tube, sample tube, test flute or flaccid flute, is a piece of laboratory glassware composed of a finger-like length of glass tubing, open at the top, with a rounded U-shaped bottom....
"; however, Robert Kail and John Cavanaugh on page 58 in the 4th edition of Human Development: A Life-Span View cite that in fact the process is contained in a petri dish
Petri dish

A Petri dish is a shallow glass or plastic cylindrical lidded dish that microbiologists use to microbiological culture cell s. It was named after Germany bacteriologist Julius Richard Petri, who invented it when working as an assistant to Robert Koch....
. Many experiments in cellular biology are conducted outside of organisms or cells; because the test conditions may not correspond to the conditions inside of the organism, this may lead to results that do not correspond to the situation that arises in a living organism.






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In vitro (Latin for within the glass) refers to the technique of performing a given procedure in a controlled environment outside of a living organism
Organism

In biology, an organism is any life thing . In at least some form, all organisms are capable of response to stimulus , reproduction, growth and developmental biology, and maintenance of homeostasis as a stable whole....
. Some may argue that in vitro refers to a process that is created in a "test tube
Test tube

A test tube, also known as a culture tube, sample tube, test flute or flaccid flute, is a piece of laboratory glassware composed of a finger-like length of glass tubing, open at the top, with a rounded U-shaped bottom....
"; however, Robert Kail and John Cavanaugh on page 58 in the 4th edition of Human Development: A Life-Span View cite that in fact the process is contained in a petri dish
Petri dish

A Petri dish is a shallow glass or plastic cylindrical lidded dish that microbiologists use to microbiological culture cell s. It was named after Germany bacteriologist Julius Richard Petri, who invented it when working as an assistant to Robert Koch....
. Many experiments in cellular biology are conducted outside of organisms or cells; because the test conditions may not correspond to the conditions inside of the organism, this may lead to results that do not correspond to the situation that arises in a living organism. Consequently, such experimental results are often annotated with in vitro, in contradistinction with in vivo
In vivo

In vivo means that which takes place inside an organism. In science, in vivo refers to experimentation done in or on the living tissue of a whole, living organism as opposed to a partial or dead one or a in vitro....
.

In vitro research


This type of research aims at describing the effects of an experimental variable on a subset of an organism's constituent parts. It tends to focus on organs
Organ (anatomy)

In biology, an organ is a biological tissue that performs a specific function or group of functions. Usually there is a main tissue and sporadic tissues....
, tissues
Biological tissue

Tissue is a cellular organizational level intermediate between cells and a complete organism. Hence, a tissue is an ensemble of cells, not necessarily identical, but from the same origin, that together carry out a specific function....
, cells
Cell (biology)

The cell is the structural and functional unit of all known Life organisms. It is the smallest unit of an organism that is classified as living, and is often called the building bricks of life....
, cellular components, proteins, and/or biomolecules. it is better suited for deducing the mechanisms of action (See in vivo
In vivo

In vivo means that which takes place inside an organism. In science, in vivo refers to experimentation done in or on the living tissue of a whole, living organism as opposed to a partial or dead one or a in vitro....
 for its description and respective merits). With fewer variables and perceptually amplified reactions to subtle causes, results are generally more discernible.

The massive adoption of low-cost in vitro molecular biology
Molecular biology

Molecular biology is the study of biology at a molecule level. The field overlaps with other areas of biology and chemistry, particularly genetics and biochemistry....
 techniques has caused a shift away from in vivo
In vivo

In vivo means that which takes place inside an organism. In science, in vivo refers to experimentation done in or on the living tissue of a whole, living organism as opposed to a partial or dead one or a in vitro....
 research which is more idiosyncratic and expensive in comparison to its molecular counterpart. Currently, in vitro research is both vital and highly productive.

However, the controlled conditions present in the in vitro system differ significantly from those in vivo and may give misleading results therefore in vitro
In vitro

In vitro refers to the technique of performing a given procedure in a controlled environment outside of a living organism. Some may argue that in vitro refers to a process that is created in a "test tube"; however, Robert Kail and John Cavanaugh on page 58 in the 4th edition of Human Development: A Life-Span View cite that in fact th...
 studies are usually followed by in vivo studies. Examples include:
  • In biochemistry, non-physiological stoichiometric concentration may result in enzymatic active in a reverse direction, hence for historical reasons several enzymes in the Krebs cycle
    Citric acid cycle

    The citric acid cycle ? also known as the tricarboxylic acid cycle ; the Krebs cycle; or, more rarely, the Szent-Gy?rgyi-Krebs cycle) ? is a series of enzyme-catalysed chemical reactions of central importance in all living cell s that use oxygen as part of cellular respiration....
     may appear to have incorrect nomeclature.
  • DNA may adopt other configurations, such as A-DNA
    A-DNA

    A-DNA is one of the many possible double helical structures of DNA. A-DNA is thought to be one of three biologically active double helical structures along with B-DNA and Z-DNA....
    .
  • Protein folding may differ as in a cell there is a high density of other protein and there are systems to aid in the folding, while in vitro the conditions are less clustered and not aided.


It should be pointed out that the term is historical, as currently most labware is disposable and made out of polypropylene
Polypropylene

Polypropylene or polypropene is a thermoplastic polymer, made by the chemical industry and used in a wide variety of applications, including packaging, textiles , stationery, plastic parts and reusable containers of various types, laboratory equipment, loudspeakers, automotive components, and polymer banknotes....
 (sterelizable by autoclaving such as microcentrifuge tubes) or clear polystyrene
Polystyrene

Polystyrene , sometimes abbreviated PS, is an Aromaticity polymer made from the aromatic monomer styrene, a liquid hydrocarbon that is commercially manufactured from petroleum by the chemical industry....
 (such as sierotological pipettes) rather than glass in order to ease labwork, ensure sterility and minimize the possibility of cuts due to broken glass.

See also

  • Animal testing
    Animal testing

    Animal testing / animal experimentation is the use of non-human animals in Experiment. It is estimated that 50 to 100 million vertebrate animals worldwide — from zebrafish to non-human primates — are used annually....
  • Ex vivo
    Ex vivo

    Ex vivo means that which takes place outside an organism. In science, ex vivo refers to experimentation or measurements done in or on living tissue in an artificial environment outside the organism with the minimum alteration of the natural conditions....
  • In situ
    In situ

    In situ is a Latin phrase meaning in the place. It is used in many different contexts....
  • In utero
    In Utero

    In Utero is the third and final studio album by the American Grunge music band Nirvana , released on September 13, 1993 by DGC Records. Nirvana intended the record to be significantly divergent from the polished production of its previous album Nevermind ....
  • In vivo
    In vivo

    In vivo means that which takes place inside an organism. In science, in vivo refers to experimentation done in or on the living tissue of a whole, living organism as opposed to a partial or dead one or a in vitro....
  • In silico
    In silico

    In silico is an expression used to mean "performed on computer or via computer simulation." The phrase is coined in analogy to the Latin language phrases in vivo and in vitro which are commonly used in biology and refer to experiments done in living organisms and outside of living organisms, respectively....
  • In papyro
    In papyro

    in papyro: referring to experiments or studies carried out only on paper. For example, the term may be applied to epidemiological studies that do not involve clinical subjects, such as meta-analysis....
  • In vitro fertilization