Isolation and partial characterization of apiogalacturonans from the cell wall of Lemna minor

1. A mild, reproducible extraction procedure, using 0.5% ammonium oxalate, was developed for the isolation of polysaccharides containing d-apiose from the cell wall of Lemna minor. On a dry-weight basis the polysaccharide fractions extracted with ammonium oxalate made up 14% of the material designated cell walls and contained 20% of the d-apiose originally present in the cell walls. The cell walls, as isolated, contained 83% of the d-apiose present in L. minor. 2. After extraction with ammonium oxalate, purified polysaccharides were obtained by DEAE-Sephadex column chromatography and by fractional precipitation with sodium chloride. With these procedures the material extracted at 22°C could be separated into at least five polysaccharides. On a dry-weight basis two of these polysaccharides made up more than 50% of the material extracted at 22°C. There was a direct relationship between the d-apiose content of the polysaccharides and their solubility in sodium chloride solutions; those of highest d-apiose content were most soluble. 3. All the polysaccharides isolated appeared to be of one general type, namely galacturonans to which were attached side chains containing d-apiose. The d-apiose content of the apiogalacturonans varied from 7.9 to 38.1%. The content of esterified d-galacturonic acid residues in all apiogalacturonans was low, being in the range 1.0–3.5%. Hydrolysis of a representative apiogalacturonan with dilute acid resulted in the complete removal of the d-apiose with little or no degradation of the galacturonan portion. 4. Treatment of polysaccharide fractions with pectinase established that those of high d-apiose content and soluble in m-sodium chloride were not degraded, whereas those of low d-apiose content and insoluble in m-sodium chloride were extensively degraded. When the d-apiose was removed from a typical pectinase-resistant polysaccharide, the remainder of the polysaccharide was readily degraded by this enzyme. 5. Periodate oxidation of representative polysaccharide fractions and apiogalacturonans and determination of the formaldehyde released showed that about 50% of the d-apiose molecules were substituted at either the 3- or the 3′-position.

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The configuration of 2,6-diamino-3-hydroxypimelic acid in microbial cell walls

Biochemical Journal ◽

10.1042/bj1150797 ◽

1969 ◽

Vol 115 (4) ◽

pp. 797-805 ◽

Cited By ~ 9

Author(s):

H R Perkins

Keyword(s):

Cell Wall ◽

Hydroxy Group ◽

Cell Walls ◽

Optical Rotation ◽

Periodate Oxidation ◽

Ring Closure ◽

Diaminopimelic Acid ◽

Amino Group ◽

Amino Groups ◽

Peptide Linkage

β-Hydroxydiaminopimelic acid, together with some diaminopimelic acid, occurs in the cell-wall mucopeptide of certain Actinomycetales. These components were converted into their di-DNP derivatives and separated by chromatography. Hence the relative proportions present in the cell walls of a number of species were measured. The problem of acid-induced inversion of configuration was studied. Of the diaminohydroxypimelic acids isomer B (see Scheme 2; amino groups meso, hydroxy group threo to its neighbouring amino group) always predominated but a small proportion of isomer D (amino groups l, hydroxy group erythro) also occurred. The configuration of the diaminohydroxypimelic acids was determined by periodate oxidation to glutamic γ-semialdehyde, which underwent spontaneous ring-closure. Reduction with sodium borohydride produced optically active proline, the configuration of which was determined by direct measurement of the optical rotation of DNP-proline. Un-cross-linked diaminohydroxypimelic acid in the cell wall was oxidized with periodate in the presence of ammonia. Since the remaining amino group was bound in peptide linkage, ring-closure was prevented and borohydride reduction of the aldehyde–ammonia presumed to be present resulted in the formation of ornithine. The quantity of ornithine was used as a measure of the degree of cross-linking.

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The effect of different extraction procedures on the recovery of cell walls in forage and faeces from cattle and sheep

The Journal of Agricultural Science ◽

10.1017/s002185960002623x ◽

1972 ◽

Vol 78 (3) ◽

pp. 351-353 ◽

Cited By ~ 11

Author(s):

K. W. Moir

Keyword(s):

Cell Wall ◽

Organic Matter ◽

Sequential Extraction ◽

Cell Walls ◽

Ammonium Oxalate ◽

Hot Water ◽

Sodium Sulphite ◽

Detergent Solution ◽

Organic Residues ◽

Cattle And Sheep

SUMMARYForages and faeces from 28 digestibility experiments with cattle or sheep were extracted with neutral detergent solution, with and without sodium sulphite, or sequentially extracted with acid-pepsin, ethyl alcohol, diethyl ether and either ammonium oxalate or hot water. Ammonium oxalate was used to extract small amounts of non-protein material not extracted from legumes by hot water. Compared with sequential extraction the average protein-free organic residues after extraction with detergent, with and without sodium sulphite, were significantly lower in legumes and faeces, but not in grasses. The largest differences occurred in faeces from grasses for which the recoveries of cell walls as percentages of the faecal organic matter were found to be 59·2, 62·0 and 66·4 respectively, after extraction with neutral detergent plus sodium sulphite, neutral detergent alone and sequential extraction with various solvents. It was considered that the differences were due to extraction of cell-wall constituents by both detergent and sulphite.

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THE PHOSPHORUS FRACTIONS OF BACILLUS CEREUS AND BACILLUS MEGATERIUM: I. A COMPARISON OF SPORES AND VEGETATIVE CELLS

Canadian Journal of Microbiology ◽

10.1139/m55-064 ◽

1955 ◽

Vol 1 (7) ◽

pp. 502-519 ◽

Cited By ~ 15

Author(s):

P. C. Fitz-James

Keyword(s):

Nucleic Acid ◽

Total Phosphorus ◽

Cell Walls ◽

Dry Weight ◽

Phosphorus Fractions ◽

Weight Basis ◽

Insoluble Residue ◽

Vegetative Cells ◽

Acid Labile ◽

Total P

The phosphorus fractions of the spores and young vegetative cells of B. cereus and B. megaterium were compared using the methods of Schneider and of Schmidt and Thannhauser. Differences were found, not only between the two types of cell, but also between the species studied. The spores of B. cereus and B. megaterium contained, on a dry weight basis, similar amounts of nucleic acid, yet the spores of B. megaterium contained twice as much total phosphorus as those of B. cereus. The excess phosphorus of B. megaterium spores was present as an acid and alkali insoluble residue and was made up of empty spore coats. While this same fraction accounted for only 4% of the total phosphorus of B. cereus spores it made up some 60% of that of B. megaterium. A similar fraction from vegetative cells was low in phosphorus. The spore coats of B. megaterium, in contrast to the cell walls were lysozyme-resistant. Cold acid-soluble and lipid phosphorus could be properly estimated only on disrupted spores. Disruption also proved essential for the ready extraction of spore nucleic acids with hot TCA, but did not greatly alter the solubility of the residue phosphorus. Ribosenucleic acid (RNA) comprised 50% of the total phosphorus in the spores of B. cereus (3–4% of the dry weight) but only 25% in B. megaterium spores. In both species the RNA of the vegetative forms accounted for a larger proportion of the total P of the cell. Ribonuclease digested the RNA of spores and vegetative cells to the same degree. The Schmidt and Thannhauser method was found more suitable than the Schneider method for the estimation of desoxyribosenucleic acid (DNA). The DNA content of B. cereus spores was about 1% of their dry weight; that of B. megaterium spores was slightly less. Some 12–20% of the phosphorus of B. cereus spores and 6% of that of the young vegetative cells was present as acid-labile (non-nucleic acid) phosphorus which exhibited some of the characteristics of polymetaphosphate.

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Effects of Changes in Biopolymer Composition on Moisture in Acetylated Wood

Forests ◽

10.3390/f11070719 ◽

2020 ◽

Vol 11 (7) ◽

pp. 719

Author(s):

Tiantian Yang ◽

Emil Engelund Thybring ◽

Maria Fredriksson ◽

Erni Ma ◽

Jinzhen Cao ◽

...

Keyword(s):

Cell Wall ◽

Moisture Content ◽

Spin Relaxation ◽

Cell Walls ◽

Lignin Content ◽

Theoretical Estimate ◽

Relaxation Times ◽

Dry Weight ◽

Hemicellulose Removal ◽

Water Saturated

To investigate the effects of changes in biopolymer composition on moisture in acetylated poplar wood (Populus euramericana Cv.), the acetylation of control wood was compared to the acetylation of wood with reduced hemicellulose or lignin content (about 9% reduction of total specimen dry weight in both cases). Time-domain nuclear magnetic resonance relaxometry of water-saturated wood gave spin–spin relaxation times (T2) of water populations, while deuteration in a sorption balance was used to characterize the hydroxyl accessibility of the wood cell walls. As expected, the acetylation of pyridine-swelled wood reduced hydroxyl accessibility and made the cell wall less accessible to water, resulting in a reduction of cell wall moisture content by about 24% compared with control wood. Hemicellulose loss per se increased the spin–spin relaxation time of cell wall water, while delignification had the opposite effect. The combined effect of hemicellulose removal and acetylation caused more than a 30% decrease of cell wall moisture content when compared with control wood. The acetylated and partially delignified wood cell walls contained higher cell wall moisture content than acetylated wood. An approximate theoretical calculation of hydroxyl accessibility for acetylated wood was in the low range, but it agreed rather well with the measured accessibility, while acetylated and partially hemicellulose-depleted and partially delignified wood for unknown reasons resulted in substantially lower hydroxyl accessibilities than the theoretical estimate.

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Unique lignin modifications pattern the nucleation of silica in sorghum endodermis

Journal of Experimental Botany ◽

10.1093/jxb/eraa127 ◽

2020 ◽

Vol 71 (21) ◽

pp. 6818-6829 ◽

Cited By ~ 3

Author(s):

Nerya Zexer ◽

Rivka Elbaum

Keyword(s):

Cell Wall ◽

Silicic Acid ◽

Cell Walls ◽

Dry Weight ◽

Cell Wall Chemistry ◽

Modified Lignin ◽

Trace Concentrations ◽

High Degree ◽

Micrometer Scale ◽

The Impact

Abstract Silicon dioxide in the form of hydrated silica is a component of plant tissues that can constitute several percent by dry weight in certain taxa. Nonetheless, the mechanism of plant silica formation is mostly unknown. Silicon (Si) is taken up from the soil by roots in the form of monosilicic acid molecules. The silicic acid is carried in the xylem and subsequently polymerizes in target sites to silica. In roots of sorghum (Sorghum bicolor), silica aggregates form in an orderly pattern along the inner tangential cell walls of endodermis cells. Using Raman microspectroscopy, autofluorescence, and scanning electron microscopy, we investigated the structure and composition of developing aggregates in roots of sorghum seedlings. Putative silica aggregation loci were identified in roots grown under Si starvation. These micrometer-scale spots were constructed of tightly packed modified lignin, and nucleated trace concentrations of silicic acid. Substantial variation in cell wall autofluorescence between Si+ and Si– roots demonstrated the impact of Si on cell wall chemistry. We propose that in Si– roots, the modified lignin cross-linked into the cell wall and lost its ability to nucleate silica. In Si+ roots, silica polymerized on the modified lignin and altered its structure. Our work demonstrates a high degree of control over lignin and silica deposition in cell walls.

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Composition and properties of the cell wall of Methanospirillum hungatii

Canadian Journal of Microbiology ◽

10.1139/m80-017 ◽

1980 ◽

Vol 26 (2) ◽

pp. 115-120 ◽

Cited By ~ 27

Author(s):

G. D. Sprott ◽

R. C. McKellar

Keyword(s):

Amino Acids ◽

Cell Wall ◽

Cell Walls ◽

Weight Fraction ◽

Dry Weight ◽

Wall Material ◽

Bond Breaking ◽

High Molecular Weight Fraction ◽

Cell Wall Proteins ◽

Isolated Cell

Dithiothreitol reacted, at pH 9.0, with the isolated cell walls of Methanospirillum hungatii, to release about 23% of the cell wall dry weight as a high molecular weight fraction (> 0.5 million daltons). Untreated walls consisted of 70% amino acids, 11% lipid, and 6.6% carbohydrate. Sugars were identified as rhamnose, ribose, glucose, galactose, and mannose. The wall material that was released contained only 47% amino acids and was enriched in lipid, glucose, and phosphate. These results support data from electron micrographs, showing the localized release of cell wall material by the disulfide bond-breaking reagent at alkaline pH. In amino acid composition the untreated walls did not differ greatly from the material released by dithiothreitol, but differed considerably from the walls of another strain of M. hungatii. The ratios of the amino acids found in the cell wall proteins of several archaebacteria and of Bacillus cereus spore coats were similar.

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Silica formation in sorghum (Sorghum bicolor) roots

10.5194/egusphere-egu21-12176 ◽

2021 ◽

Author(s):

Nerya Zexer ◽

Rivka Elbaum

Keyword(s):

Cell Wall ◽

Sorghum Bicolor ◽

Silicic Acid ◽

Cell Walls ◽

Dry Weight ◽

Soluble Form ◽

Cell Wall Chemistry ◽

Modified Lignin ◽

Auto Fluorescence ◽

The Impact

Silicon oxides are the most abundant mineral group in soils. Therefore, plant roots are always exposed to some silicic acid (Si(OH)4), which is the soluble form of silicates. Monosilicic acid molecules are taken up by roots, carried in the xylem, and subsequently polymerize to silica in varied silicifying target sites. This biogenic silica (SiO2&#183;nH2O) can constitute several percent by dry weight in certain plant taxa. However, the mechanisms of its formation remain mostly unknown. In the roots of sorghum (Sorghum bicolor), silica aggregates form in an orderly pattern along the cell walls of endodermis cells. To investigate the structure and composition of root silica aggregates, we studied their development along roots of hydroponically grown sorghum seedlings. By using Raman micro-spectroscopy, auto-fluorescence, and scanning electron microscopy, we found that putative silica aggregation loci could be identified in roots grown under Si starvation. These micrometer-scale spots were constructed of tightly packed modified lignin and were capable of nucleating trace concentrations of silicic acid. Substantial variation in cell wall auto-fluorescence between roots grown with and without silicic acid demonstrated the impact of silicon on cell wall chemistry. Taken together, this work demonstrates a high degree of control over lignin and silica deposition in cell walls. Such regulation implies an important, yet unknown, function for silicon in plant biology.

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Silicification of wood-cell walls

Proceedings, annual meeting, Electron Microscopy Society of America ◽

10.1017/s0424820100169870 ◽

1994 ◽

Vol 52 ◽

pp. 428-429

Author(s):

S. E. Keckler ◽

D. M. Dabbs ◽

N. Yao ◽

I. A. Aksay

Keyword(s):

Electron Microscopy ◽

Cell Wall ◽

Cell Walls ◽

Lignin Content ◽

Resin Composite ◽

Middle Lamella ◽

Cellulose Fibers ◽

Complex Structures ◽

Rich Region ◽

Inorganic Precursors

Cellular organic structures such as wood can be used as scaffolds for the synthesis of complex structures of organic/ceramic nanocomposites. The wood cell is a fiber-reinforced resin composite of cellulose fibers in a lignin matrix. A single cell wall, containing several layers of different fiber orientations and lignin content, is separated from its neighboring wall by the middle lamella, a lignin-rich region. In order to achieve total mineralization, deposition on and in the cell wall must be achieved. Geological fossilization of wood occurs as permineralization (filling the void spaces with mineral) and petrifaction (mineralizing the cell wall as the organic component decays) through infiltration of wood with inorganics after growth. Conversely, living plants can incorporate inorganics into their cells and in some cases into the cell walls during growth. In a recent study, we mimicked geological fossilization by infiltrating inorganic precursors into wood cells in order to enhance the properties of wood. In the current work, we use electron microscopy to examine the structure of silica formed in the cell walls after infiltration of tetraethoxysilane (TEOS).

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