Structure and Function of Plant Cell Wall

A special issue of Plants (ISSN 2223-7747). This special issue belongs to the section "Plant Development and Morphogenesis".

Deadline for manuscript submissions: closed (31 May 2021) | Viewed by 17929

Special Issue Editor


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Guest Editor
Graduate School of Life Sciences, Tohoku University, Aoba-ku, Sendai 980-8578, Japan
Interests: plant cell wall; plant growth and development; parasitism; evolution

Special Issue Information

Dear Colleagues,

Plant cell wall research touches on a very wide variety of processes in plants, such as development, environmental response, and defense. Increasing knowledge of the plant cell wall has revealed opportunities for the development of innovative food products and efficient biomass conversion technology.

Recent advances in molecular technology and bioinformatics have provided further insights into the role of the plant cell wall in various plant processes. In this Special Issue of Plants, research articles are welcome that provide exciting discoveries on the structure and function of the plant cell wall. Additionally, we expect that researchers from different fields of plant science will contribute research articles concerning any of the cell wall-related aspects, so that we can deepen our understanding of many aspects of the plant cell wall.

This Special Issue is also open to plant cell wall research articles covering biochemistry, physiology, molecular genetics, cell biology, omics, and bioinformatics technologies.

Dr. Ryusuke Yokoyama
Guest Editor

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Keywords

  • Plant cell wall structure
  • plant cell wall metabolism
  • plant cell wall modification
  • plant cell wall function
  • development
  • growth
  • differentiation
  • environmental response
  • pathogenic stress response
  • parasitism
  • evolution
  • omics
  • bioinformatics

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Published Papers (5 papers)

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Research

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23 pages, 7336 KiB  
Article
The Modification of Plant Cell Wall Polysaccharides in Potato Plants during Pectobacterium atrosepticum-Caused Infection
by Vladimir Gorshkov, Ivan Tsers, Bakhtiyar Islamov, Marina Ageeva, Natalia Gogoleva, Polina Mikshina, Olga Parfirova, Olga Gogoleva, Olga Petrova, Tatyana Gorshkova and Yuri Gogolev
Plants 2021, 10(7), 1407; https://doi.org/10.3390/plants10071407 - 9 Jul 2021
Cited by 6 | Viewed by 3408
Abstract
Our study is the first to consider the changes in the entire set of matrix plant cell wall (PCW) polysaccharides in the course of a plant infectious disease. We compared the molecular weight distribution, monosaccharide content, and the epitope distribution of pectic compounds [...] Read more.
Our study is the first to consider the changes in the entire set of matrix plant cell wall (PCW) polysaccharides in the course of a plant infectious disease. We compared the molecular weight distribution, monosaccharide content, and the epitope distribution of pectic compounds and cross-linking glycans in non-infected potato plants and plants infected with Pectobacterium atrosepticum at the initial and advanced stages of plant colonization by the pathogen. To predict the gene products involved in the modification of the PCW polysaccharide skeleton during the infection, the expression profiles of potato and P. atrosepticum PCW-related genes were analyzed by RNA-Seq along with phylogenetic analysis. The assemblage of P. atrosepticum biofilm-like structures—the bacterial emboli—and the accumulation of specific fragments of pectic compounds that prime the formation of these structures were demonstrated within potato plants (a natural host of P. atrosepticum). Collenchyma was shown to be the most “vulnerable” tissue to P. atrosepticum among the potato stem tissues. The infection caused by the representative of the Soft Rot Pectobacteriaceae was shown to affect not only pectic compounds but also cross-linking glycans; the content of the latter was increased in the infected plants compared to the non-infected ones. Full article
(This article belongs to the Special Issue Structure and Function of Plant Cell Wall)
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20 pages, 3161 KiB  
Article
Excess Zinc Alters Cell Wall Class III Peroxidase Activity and Flavonoid Content in the Maize Scutellum
by David Manuel Díaz-Pontones, José Isaac Corona-Carrillo, Carlos Herrera-Miranda and Sandra González
Plants 2021, 10(2), 197; https://doi.org/10.3390/plants10020197 - 21 Jan 2021
Cited by 3 | Viewed by 2346
Abstract
Maize is one of the most important cereal crop species due to its uses for human and cattle nourishment, as well as its industrial use as a raw material. The yield and grain quality of maize depend on plant establishment, which starts with [...] Read more.
Maize is one of the most important cereal crop species due to its uses for human and cattle nourishment, as well as its industrial use as a raw material. The yield and grain quality of maize depend on plant establishment, which starts with germination. Germination is dependent on embryo vigor and the stored reserves in the scutellum and endosperm. During germination, the scutellum epidermis changes and secretes enzymes and hormones into the endosperm. As a result, the hydrolysis products of the reserves and the different soluble nutrients are translocated to the scutellum through epithelial cells. Then, the reserves are directed to the embryo axis to sustain its growth. Therefore, the microenvironment surrounding the scutellum modulates its function. Zinc (Zn) is a micronutrient stored in the maize scutellum and endosperm; during imbibition, Zn from the endosperm is solubilized and mobilized towards the scutellum. During this process, Zn first becomes concentrated and interacts with cell wall charges, after which excess Zn is internalized in the vacuole. Currently, the effect of high Zn concentrations on the scutellum function and germinative processes are not known. In this paper, we show that, as a function of the concentration and time of exposure, Zn causes decreases in the radicle and plumule lengths and promotes the accumulation of reactive oxygen species (ROS) and flavonoids as well as changes in the activity of the cell wall Class III peroxidase (POD), which was quantified with guaiacol or catechin in the presence of H2O2. The relationship between the activity index or proportion of POD activity in the scutellum and the changes in the flavonoid concentration is proposed as a marker of stress and the state of vigor of the embryo. Full article
(This article belongs to the Special Issue Structure and Function of Plant Cell Wall)
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19 pages, 3846 KiB  
Article
Disruption of Very-Long-Chain-Fatty Acid Synthesis Has an Impact on the Dynamics of Cellulose Synthase in Arabidopsis thaliana
by Xiaoyu Zhu, Frédérique Tellier, Ying Gu and Shundai Li
Plants 2020, 9(11), 1599; https://doi.org/10.3390/plants9111599 - 18 Nov 2020
Cited by 5 | Viewed by 2901
Abstract
In higher plants, cellulose is synthesized by membrane-spanning large protein complexes named cellulose synthase complexes (CSCs). In this study, the Arabidopsis PASTICCINO2 (PAS2) was identified as an interacting partner of cellulose synthases. PAS2 was previously characterized as the plant 3-hydroxy-acyl-CoA dehydratase, an ER [...] Read more.
In higher plants, cellulose is synthesized by membrane-spanning large protein complexes named cellulose synthase complexes (CSCs). In this study, the Arabidopsis PASTICCINO2 (PAS2) was identified as an interacting partner of cellulose synthases. PAS2 was previously characterized as the plant 3-hydroxy-acyl-CoA dehydratase, an ER membrane-localized dehydratase that is essential for very-long-chain-fatty acid (VLCFA) elongation. The pas2-1 mutants show defective cell elongation and reduction in cellulose content in both etiolated hypocotyls and light-grown roots. Although disruption of VLCFA synthesis by a genetic alteration had a reduction in VLCFA in both etiolated hypocotyls and light-grown roots, it had a differential effect on cellulose content in the two systems, suggesting the threshold level of VLCFA for efficient cellulose synthesis may be different in the two biological systems. pas2-1 had a reduction in both CSC delivery rate and CSC velocity at the PM in etiolated hypocotyls. Interestingly, Golgi but not post-Golgi endomembrane structures exhibited a severe defect in motility. Experiments using pharmacological perturbation of VLCFA content in etiolated hypocotyls strongly indicate a novel function of PAS2 in the regulation of CSC and Golgi motility. Through a combination of genetic, biochemical and cell biology studies, our study demonstrated that PAS2 as a multifunction protein has an important role in the regulation of cellulose biosynthesis in Arabidopsis hypocotyl. Full article
(This article belongs to the Special Issue Structure and Function of Plant Cell Wall)
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Review

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22 pages, 446 KiB  
Review
With an Ear Up against the Wall: An Update on Mechanoperception in Arabidopsis
by Sara Behnami and Dario Bonetta
Plants 2021, 10(8), 1587; https://doi.org/10.3390/plants10081587 - 31 Jul 2021
Cited by 2 | Viewed by 2727
Abstract
Cells interpret mechanical signals and adjust their physiology or development appropriately. In plants, the interface with the outside world is the cell wall, a structure that forms a continuum with the plasma membrane and the cytoskeleton. Mechanical stress from cell wall damage or [...] Read more.
Cells interpret mechanical signals and adjust their physiology or development appropriately. In plants, the interface with the outside world is the cell wall, a structure that forms a continuum with the plasma membrane and the cytoskeleton. Mechanical stress from cell wall damage or deformation is interpreted to elicit compensatory responses, hormone signalling, or immune responses. Our understanding of how this is achieved is still evolving; however, we can refer to examples from animals and yeast where more of the details have been worked out. Here, we provide an update on this changing story with a focus on candidate mechanosensitive channels and plasma membrane-localized receptors. Full article
(This article belongs to the Special Issue Structure and Function of Plant Cell Wall)
16 pages, 2111 KiB  
Review
A Genomic Perspective on the Evolutionary Diversity of the Plant Cell Wall
by Ryusuke Yokoyama
Plants 2020, 9(9), 1195; https://doi.org/10.3390/plants9091195 - 12 Sep 2020
Cited by 15 | Viewed by 4675
Abstract
The plant cell wall is a complex and dynamic structure composed of numerous different molecules that play multiple roles in all aspects of plant life. Currently, a new frontier in biotechnology is opening up, which is providing new insights into the structural and [...] Read more.
The plant cell wall is a complex and dynamic structure composed of numerous different molecules that play multiple roles in all aspects of plant life. Currently, a new frontier in biotechnology is opening up, which is providing new insights into the structural and functional diversity of cell walls, and is thus serving to re-emphasize the significance of cell wall divergence in the evolutionary history of plant species. The ever-increasing availability of plant genome datasets will thus provide an invaluable basis for enhancing our knowledge regarding the diversity of cell walls among different plant species. In this review, as an example of a comparative genomics approach, I examine the diverse patterns of cell wall gene families among 100 species of green plants, and illustrate the evident benefits of using genome databases for studying cell wall divergence. Given that the growth and development of all types of plant cells are intimately associated with cell wall dynamics, gaining a further understanding of the functional diversity of cell walls in relation to diverse biological events will make significant contributions to a broad range of plant sciences. Full article
(This article belongs to the Special Issue Structure and Function of Plant Cell Wall)
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