Cassandra M. Collins

TL;DR: Downregulation of GAUT4 reduces HG and rhamnogalacturonan II (RGII), reduces wall calcium and boron, and increases extractability of cell wall sugars, which improves biomass yields and sugar release from biomass processing.

TL;DR: Results show that downregulation of GAUT12.1 leads to a reduction in a population of xylan and pectin during wood formation and to reduced recalcitrance, more easily extractable cell walls, and increased growth in Populus.

TL;DR: A previously uncharacterized laccase from Populus is described, whose reduced expression resulted in transgenic Populus trees with changes in syringyl/guaiacyl ratios as well as altered sugar release phenotypes, suggesting the transgene modulates phenolics that are associated with the cell wall structure.

TL;DR: The data support the hypothesis that GAUT12.1 synthesizes either an HG-containing primer for xylan synthesis or an HG glycan required for proper xylan deposition, anchoring, and/or architecture in the wall, and the possibility of HG and xylan glycans being connected to each other by a base-sensitive covalent linkage.

TL;DR: The results suggest that the overexpression of PdDUF266A can increase cellulose content, reduce recalcitrance, and enhance biomass production, and that PDDUF 266A is a promising target for genetic manipulation for biofuel production.