Multistep degradation method for β-O-4 linkage in lignins: γ-TTSA method. Part 2: reaction of lignin model polymer (DHP)

A selective cleavage method for β-O-4 linkages (the γ-TTSA method) was introduced in previous works, which consists of four reaction steps: (1) γ-tosylation, (2) thioetherification, (3) sulfonylation, and (4) mild alkali degradation. This method was applied to the degradation of a lignin polymer model (dehydrogenation polymer, DHP) consisting of guaiacyl units. Each reaction step was followed by Fourier transform infrared (FT-IR) spectroscopy and heteronuclear single quantum coherence nuclear magnetic resonance (HSQC-NMR) spectroscopy. It was demonstrated that only the β-O-4 linkage was selectively cleaved by the γ-TTSA method, although other linkages, such as β-5 and β-β linkages, were also present in the DHP. Consequently, the γ-TTSA method is expected to be also useful for the degradation of native lignins.

Studies on the dehydrogenative polymerization of monolignol β-glycosides: Part 5. UV spectroscopic monitoring of horseradish peroxidase-catalyzed polymerization of monolignol glycosides

Horseradish peroxidase (HRP)-initiated dehydrogenative polymerizations of guaiacyl (G) and syringyl (S)-type monolignol γ-O-glucosides, isoconiferin (iso-G) and isosyringin (iso-S), which contain a hydrophilic glucosyl unit on γ-position of coniferyl alcohol (G-alc) and sinapyl alcohol (S-alc), respectively, were monitored by UV spectroscopy to study the formation of dehydrogenation polymer (DHP, lignin polymer model) in a homogeneous aqueous phase. During homopolymerization of iso-S, a new absorbance band at 325 nm (A 325) rapidly increased in intensity and then gradually disappeared, whereas such stable changes in absorbance were not observed during homopolymerization of iso-G. During polymerization of iso-S, A 325 rapidly disappeared when an acid, nucleophile or reductant was added to the reaction mixture, indicating that A 325 can be attributed to S-type quinone methide intermediates (QMs). Similar to iso-S polymerization, temporary absorbance at 328 nm was observed during conventional polymerization of S-alc. We interpret this observation as follows: S-type QMs accumulated in the reaction mixture and the progress of subsequent DHP formation during oxidative polymerization of iso-S or S-alc was hindered. UV monitoring of iso-G and iso-S copolymerization revealed that the presence of iso-G promoted the disappearance of A 325. Furthermore, S-type QMs generated in situ by iso-S polymerization disappeared more rapidly after guaiacol addition than after 2,6-dimethoxyphenol addition. The following mechanism for copolymerization of iso-G and iso-S can be proposed: G-type precursors with phenolic hydroxyl groups react readily by nucleophilic addition with the α-C of S-type QMs, and the molecular chains of DHPs increase via non-cyclic α-aryl ether bonds.

Studies on the dehydrogenative polymerizations of monolignol β-glycosides. Part 2: Horseradish peroxidase-catalyzed dehydrogenative polymerization of isoconiferin

Dehydrogenative polymerization of isoconiferin (IC; coniferyl alcohol γ-O-β-D-glucopyranoside) catalyzed by horseradish peroxidase (HRP) was carried out. The polymerization of IC proceeded in a homogeneous system, resulting in a water-soluble dehydrogenation polymer (IC-DHP). The degree of polymerization (DP) of IC-DHP was significantly higher than that of a standard dehydrogenative polymer (CA-DHP) obtained from coniferyl alcohol (CA) in a heterogeneous system. Under optimum conditions, the DP of IC-DHP was 44 (M n=1.5×104), whereas that for CA-DHP was only 11 (M n=3.0×103, as acetate). Spectroscopic analyses confirmed that IC-DHP has a lignin-like structure containing D-glucose moieties attached to the lignin side-chains. The D-glucose unit introduced into γ-O position of CA essentially influenced the water solubility and molecular mass of the resulting DHP.

Solid State NMR Analysis of β-13C-Enriched Lignocellulosic Material During Light-Induced Yellowing

Summary Photoyellowing of lignocellulosic materials has been studied with a new technique based on solid state 13C-NMR analysis of 13C-enriched DHP in cell wall tissue. The selectively 13C-enriched cell wall-dehydrogenation polymer (CW-DHP) was prepared directly on differentiating xylem from spruce (Picea abies) at pH 6.0 by administering β-13C-enriched coniferin in an enzymatic system consisting of glucose oxidase, β-glucosidase, and the naturally occurring water-insoluble enzymes remaining in the cell wall. The bonding pattern of the formed CW-DHP was found to be: 42% β-β, β-5, and β-1 substructures; 36% β-O-4 derived substructures; and 22% coniferyl alcohol and coniferaldehyde end-groups. The 13C-NMR analysis of unirradiated and irradiated tissue revealed a decrease in the relative amount of coniferaldehyde and/or coniferyl alcohol end-groups during irradiation. Prolonged irradiation also introduced new signals centered at 37, 70, and 102 ppm. The results indicate that the present technique, with the formation of DHP in a naturally lignifying carbohydrate environment, has the potential of being a valuable tool for the study of structural changes of lignin during light-induced yellowing.

Use of β-13 C labelled Coniferyl Alcohol to Detect "End-Wise" Polymerization in the Formation of DHPs

Summary The possibility that preformed dehydrogenation polymer (DHP) could function as a template to induce a structural pattern in DHP more closely resembling that of natural softwood lignin was investigated by oxidizing β-13C-labelled coniferyl alcohol in a medium containing preformed unlabelled polymeric DHP. The experiments were performed at pH 4 and pH 6.5. 1D and 2D NMR were used to estimate the distribution of structural units. No such template effect was found in a comparison of unlabelled with uniformly labelled DHP. Indeed, the effect of pH on the coupling pattern of coniferyl alcohol was greater than the effect of the preformed DHP.