Polystyrene plastic must be subjected to a surface treatment to render the plastic suitable for cell attachment. Untreated polystyrene surfaces are not suitable for cell attachment due to the surface chemistry of the polystyrene. The tissue culture treatment process involves exposing a polystyrene microplate to a plasma gas in order to modify the hydrophobic plastic surface to make it more hydrophilic. The resulting surface carries a net negative charge due to the presence of oxygen-containing functional groups such as hydroxyl and carboxyl. In general, this will lead to increased cell attachment.