Lignin polymerization: how do plants manage the chemistry so well?

Tobimatsu, Yuki; Schuetz, Mathias

doi:10.1016/j.copbio.2018.10.001

Cited by 247 publications

(157 citation statements)

References 61 publications

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“…As a result, the potential role of genes in the regulation of lignin biosynthesis and deposition at the cellular level is often ignored or simplified. This aspect is particularly important, given recent reports demonstrating that the deposition of lignin in the cell wall is under the spatial control of particular proteins localized in the cell wall (Hosmani et al , ; Yi Chou et al , ; Tobimatsu and Schuetz, ).…”

Section: Discussionmentioning

confidence: 99%

A rapid and quantitative safranin‐based fluorescent microscopy method to evaluate cell wall lignification

et al. 2020

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One of the main characteristics of plant cells is the presence of the cell wall located outside the plasma membrane. In particular cells, this wall can be reinforced by lignin, a polyphenolic polymer that plays a central role for vascular plants, conferring hydrophobicity to conducting tissues and mechanical support for upright growth. Lignin has been studied extensively by a range of different techniques, including anatomical and morphological analyses using dyes to characterize the polymer localization in situ. With the constant improvement of imaging techniques, it is now possible to revisit old qualitative techniques and adapt them to obtain efficient, highly resolutive, quantitative, fast and safe methodologies. In this study, we revisit and exploit the potential of fluorescent microscopy coupled to safranin-O staining to develop a quantitative approach for lignin content determination. The developed approach is based on ratiometric emission measurements and the development of an IMAGEJ macro. To demonstrate the potential of our methodology compared with other commonly used lignin reagents, we demonstrated the use of safranin-O staining to evaluate and compare lignin contents in previously characterized Arabidopsis thaliana lignin biosynthesis mutants. In addition, the analysis of lignin content and spatial distribution in the Arabidopsis laccase mutant also provided new biological insights into the effects of laccase gene downregulation in different cell types. Our safranin-O-based methodology, also validated for Linum usitatissimum (flax), Zea mays (maize) and Populus tremula x alba (poplar), significantly improves and speeds up anatomical and developmental investigations of lignin, which we hope will contribute to new discoveries in many areas of cell wall plant research. RESULTS Safranin emission spectra depends on lignin contentBond et al. (2008) demonstrated that the safranin emission spectrum changes according to cell wall lignin content. Higher lignin levels induce a relative increase in the red

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Section: Discussionmentioning

confidence: 99%

A rapid and quantitative safranin‐based fluorescent microscopy method to evaluate cell wall lignification

et al. 2020

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“…Typical gymnosperm and dicot lignins contain very low or undetectable levels of H units, whereas monocot lignins tend to incorporate larger amounts of H units, albeit at still low levels (Lapierre, ; Gui et al , ). As different types of lignin monomers can form different types of intermonomeric linkages in lignin polymers (Ralph et al , ; Tobimatsu & Schuetz, ), the composition of lignin monomers is likely to be the key determinant of various properties of lignin and cell walls as a whole. It is believed that lignin composition varies among different cell types, such as in vessels and fibres (Boerjan et al , ; Nakashima et al , ), although the quantitative determination of cell‐type‐specific lignin composition is still challenging.…”

Section: Introductionmentioning

confidence: 99%

Fibre‐specific regulation of lignin biosynthesis improves biomass quality in Populus

et al. 2020

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Lignin is a major component of cell wall biomass and decisively affects biomass utilisation. Engineering of lignin biosynthesis is extensively studied, while lignin modification often causes growth defects.We developed a strategy for cell-type-specific modification of lignin to achieve improvements in cell wall property without growth penalty. We targeted a lignin-related transcription factor, LTF1, for modification of lignin biosynthesis. LTF1 can be engineered to a nonphosphorylation form which is introduced into Populus under the control of either a vessel-specific or fibre-specific promoter.The transgenics with lignin suppression in vessels showed severe dwarfism and thin-walled vessels, while the transgenics with lignin suppression in fibres displayed vigorous growth with normal vessels under phytotron, glasshouse and field conditions. In-depth lignin structural analyses revealed that such cell-type-specific downregulation of lignin biosynthesis led to the alteration of overall lignin composition in xylem tissues reflecting the population of distinctive lignin polymers produced in vessel and fibre cells.This study demonstrates that fibre-specific suppression of lignin biosynthesis resulted in the improvement of wood biomass quality and saccharification efficiency and presents an effective strategy to precisely regulate lignin biosynthesis with desired growth performance.

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“…Feruloylated AXs and lignins were indeed detected early in developing grain [14]. Current evidence suggests that two enzyme families, class III peroxidases and laccases, are involved in lignin polymerization [56]. These proteins were identified in the outer layers of developing grain in wheat.…”

Section: Discussionmentioning

confidence: 97%

Cell Wall Proteome of Wheat Grain Endosperm and Outer Layers at Two Key Stages of Early Development

Cherkaoui

Lollier

Geairon

et al. 2019

IJMS

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The cell wall is an important compartment in grain cells that fulfills both structural and functional roles. It has a dynamic structure that is constantly modified during development and in response to biotic and abiotic stresses. Non-structural cell wall proteins (CWPs) are key players in the remodeling of the cell wall during events that punctuate the plant life. Here, a subcellular and quantitative proteomic approach was carried out to identify CWPs possibly involved in changes in cell wall metabolism at two key stages of wheat grain development: the end of the cellularization step and the beginning of storage accumulation. Endosperm and outer layers of wheat grain were analyzed separately as they have different origins (maternal and seed) and functions in grains. Altogether, 734 proteins with predicted signal peptides were identified (CWPs). Functional annotation of CWPs pointed out a large number of proteins potentially involved in cell wall polysaccharide remodeling. In the grain outer layers, numerous proteins involved in cutin formation or lignin polymerization were found, while an unexpected abundance of proteins annotated as plant invertase/pectin methyl esterase inhibitors were identified in the endosperm. In addition, numerous CWPs were accumulating in the endosperm at the grain filling stage, thus revealing strong metabolic activities in the cell wall during endosperm cell differentiation, while protein accumulation was more intense at the earlier stage of development in outer layers. Altogether, our work gives important information on cell wall metabolism during early grain development in both parts of the grain, namely the endosperm and outer layers. The wheat cell wall proteome is the largest cell wall proteome of a monocot species found so far.

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Lignin polymerization: how do plants manage the chemistry so well?

Cited by 247 publications

References 61 publications

A rapid and quantitative safranin‐based fluorescent microscopy method to evaluate cell wall lignification

A rapid and quantitative safranin‐based fluorescent microscopy method to evaluate cell wall lignification

Fibre‐specific regulation of lignin biosynthesis improves biomass quality in Populus

Cell Wall Proteome of Wheat Grain Endosperm and Outer Layers at Two Key Stages of Early Development

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