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Tuning of pectin methylesterification: consequences for cell wall biomechanics and development.


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Authors

Levesque-Tremblay, Gabriel 
Pelloux, Jerome 
Braybrook, Siobhan A 
Müller, Kerstin 

Abstract

Recent publications have increased our knowledge of how pectin composition and the degree of homogalacturonan methylesterification impact the biochemical and biomechanical properties of plant cell walls, plant development, and plants' interactions with their abiotic and biotic environments. Experimental observations have shown that the relationships between the DM, the pattern of de-methylesterificaton, its effect on cell wall elasticity, other biomechanical parameters, and growth are not straightforward. Working towards a detailed understanding of these relationships at single cell resolution is one of the big tasks of pectin research. Pectins are highly complex polysaccharides abundant in plant primary cell walls. New analytical and microscopy techniques are revealing the composition and mechanical properties of the cell wall and increasing our knowledge on the topic. Progress in plant physiological research supports a link between cell wall pectin modifications and plant development and interactions with the environment. Homogalacturonan pectins, which are major components of the primary cell wall, have a potential for modifications such as methylesterification, as well as an ability to form cross-linked structures with divalent cations. This contributes to changing the mechanical properties of the cell wall. This review aims to give a comprehensive overview of the pectin component homogalacturonan, including its synthesis, modification, regulation and role in the plant cell wall.

Description

This is the final version of the article. It first appeared from Springer via http://dx.doi.org/10.1007/s00425-015-2358-5

Keywords

Biomechanical Phenomena, Cell Wall, Esterification, Pectins

Journal Title

Planta

Conference Name

Journal ISSN

0032-0935
1432-2048

Volume Title

242

Publisher

Springer Science and Business Media LLC
Sponsorship
Biotechnology and Biological Sciences Research Council (BB/L002884/1)
The financial support from the NSERC Postgraduate Scholarships (to G.L.-T.), the Institut Universitaire de France (IUF) to J.P. and a Marie Curie International Outgoing Fellowship to K.M. is gratefully acknowledged.