Interactions between pectin and cellulose in primary plant cell walls

Abstract

To understand the architecture of the plant cell wall, it is of importance to understand both structural characteristics of cell wall polysaccharides and interactions between these polysaccharides. Interactions between polysaccharides were studied in the residue after water and chelating agent extraction by sequential extractions with H2O and alkali. The 6 M alkali residue still represented 31%, 11% and 5% of all GalA present in carrot, tomato and strawberry, respectively, and these pectin populations were assumed to strongly interact with cellulose. Digestion of the carrot 6 M alkali residue by glucanases released ∼27% of the 6 M residue, mainly representing pectin. In tomato and strawberry alkali residues, glucanases were not able to release pectin populations. The ability of glucanases to release pectin populations suggests that the carrot cell wall contains unique, covalent interactions between pectin and cellulose.