Showing papers by "Debra Mohnen published in 2014"

A review of xylan and lignin biosynthesis: Foundation for studying Arabidopsis irregular xylem mutants with pleiotropic phenotypes

Abstract: Plant cells are surrounded by a carbohydrate-rich extracellular matrix known as the cell wall. Primary cell walls are laid down around dividing and elongating cells and consist largely of the polysaccharides cellulose, hemicelluloses, and pectin along with approximately 10% protein. Specific cells such as xylem vessels and fibers lay down a secondary wall rich in cellulose, hemicellulose, and lignin, with lesser amounts of pectin. Most of the models depict the plant cell wall as a matrix of separate polysaccharides. However, the recent identification of a proteoglycan that contains covalently attached pectin and xylan indicates that at least some of these wall glycans exist as domains within a single glycopolymer and that current models of the wall need to be revised. Furthermore, several cell wall biosynthesis mutants, including the secondary cell wall mutant irregular xylem (irx) 8, are affected in multiple cell wall polymers making it challenging to define the biochemical function of the mutated gene. The goal of this review is to provide a background for studying genes which encode secondary cell wall biosynthetic proteins whose mutation affects multiple wall polymers including xylan and lignin. We first review the phenotypes of the irx mutants and then summarize the current understanding of the structure and synthesis of xylan and lignin along with a review of transcription factors known to affect secondary wall synthesis. This review is intended to serve as a resource for those studying genes that encode proteins involved in the synthesis of plant secondary wall lignin and xylan.

Deletion of a gene cluster encoding pectin degrading enzymes in Caldicellulosiruptor bescii reveals an important role for pectin in plant biomass recalcitrance

Abstract: Background: A major obstacle, and perhaps the most important economic barrier to the effective use of plant biomass for the production of fuels, chemicals, and bioproducts, is our current lack of knowledge of how to efficiently and effectively deconstruct wall polymers for their subsequent use as feedstocks. Plants represent the most desired source of renewable energy and hydrocarbons because they fix CO2, making their use carbon neutral. Their biomass structure, however, is a barrier to deconstruction, and this is often referred to as recalcitrance. Members of the bacterial genus Caldicellulosiruptor have the ability to grow on unpretreated plant biomass and thus provide an assay for plant deconstruction and biomass recalcitrance. Results: Using recently developed genetic tools for manipulation of these bacteria, a deletion of a gene cluster encoding enzymes for pectin degradation was constructed, and the resulting mutant was reduced in its ability to grow on both dicot and grass biomass, but not on soluble sugars. The plant biomass from three phylogenetically diverse plants, Arabidopsis (a herbaceous dicot), switchgrass (a monocot grass), and poplar (a woody dicot), was used in these analyses. These biomass types have cell walls that are significantly different from each other in both structure and composition. While pectin is a relatively minor component of the grass and woody dicot substrates, the reduced growth of the mutant on all three biomass types provides direct evidence that pectin plays an important role in biomass recalcitrance. Glycome profiling of the plant material remaining after growth of the mutant on Arabidopsis biomass compared to the wild-type revealed differences in the rhamnogalacturonan I, homogalacturonan, arabinogalactan, and xylan profiles. In contrast, only minor differences were observed in the glycome profiles of the switchgrass and poplar biomass. Conclusions: The combination of microbial digestion and plant biomass analysis provides a new and important platform to identify plant wall structures whose presence reduces the ability of microbes to deconstruct plant walls and to identify enzymes that specifically deconstruct those structures.

Loss of Arabidopsis GAUT12/IRX8 causes anther indehiscence and leads to reduced G lignin associated with altered matrix polysaccharide deposition

Abstract: GAUT12 (GAlactUronosylTransferase12)/IRX8 (IRregular Xylem8) is a putative glycosyltransferase involved in Arabidopsis secondary cell wall biosynthesis. Previous work showed that Arabidopsis irregular xylem8 (irx8) mutants have collapsed xylem due to a reduction in xylan and a lesser reduction in a subfraction of homogalacturonan (HG). We now show that male sterility in the irx8 mutant is due to indehiscent anthers caused by reduced deposition of xylan and lignin in the endothecium cell layer. The reduced lignin content was demonstrated by histochemical lignin staining and pyrolysis Molecular Beam Mass Spectrometry (pyMBMS) and is associated with reduced lignin biosynthesis in irx8 stems. Examination of sequential chemical extracts of stem walls using 2D 13C-1H Heteronuclear Single-Quantum Correlation (HSQC) NMR spectroscopy and antibody-based glycome profiling revealed a reduction in G lignin in the 1 M KOH extract and a concomitant loss of xylan, arabinogalactan and pectin epitopes in the ammonium oxalate, sodium carbonate, and 1 M KOH extracts from the irx8 walls compared with wild-type walls. Immunolabeling of stem sections using the monoclonal antibody CCRC-M138 reactive against an unsubstituted xylopentaose epitope revealed a bi-lamellate pattern in wild-type fiber cells and a collapsed bi-layer in irx8 cells, suggesting that at least in fiber cells, GAUT12 participates in the synthesis of a specific layer or type of xylan or helps to provide an architecture framework required for the native xylan deposition pattern. The results support the hypothesis that GAUT12 functions in the synthesis of a structure required for xylan and lignin deposition during secondary cell wall formation.