Tag: Cell Walls

Plant fibres from crops such as flax and hemp have diverse uses from rope to clothing, and are increasingly being incorporated into eco-friendly biocomposite materials.  These long, flexible, useful fibres, called “bast” fibres, are not derived from the xylem, but instead are derived from specialized…

Plant growth and morphogenesis are linked to cell wall properties, so a deep understanding of cell wall biochemistry and mechanics is essential for studying plant development. In a recent review, Bidhendi and Geitmann describe current and emerging techniques for the analysis of cell wall mechanics. Classic…

Dodder (Cuscuta campestris) is a plant that parasitizes other plants by forming penetrating haustoria through which they tap into the host’s vascular tissues and extract nutrients. Most tomatoes are susceptible, but a few varieties are resistant. Jhu and Farhi et al. examined these resistant varieties…

Many of the polysaccharides that make up the plant cell wall carry acetate side groups. Notably, the degree of such acetylation is not always the same—even within the same species, it changes over the course of development and is different between tissues. While the mechanism for adding acetyl groups…

Lateral root development helps plants explore the soil for mineral nutrients and water, and there are environmental and internal cues that precede the formation of lateral root primordia. In Arabidopsis thaliana, some of these internal cues include increased auxin concentrations around lateral root founder…

Okekeogbu et al. compare the glycomes and proteomes of the Golgi in grasses and dicots, finding that the differences in cell wall architecture are not reflected in differences between polysaccharides produced in the Golgi. Plant Cell https://doi.org/10.1105/tpc.18.00755 Background: Grasses and other…

There is an ever-growing need for novel herbicides as more weeds are becoming resistant to commonly used herbicides. In a recent report from Hu et al., the authors identified that a previously described cellulose biosynthesis-inhibiting chemical, C17, possesses an herbicidal quality. The authors showed…

Zhang et al. discover a deacetylase from rice that highlights the importance regulating acetylation in the cell wall. Plant Cell https://doi.org/10.1105/tpc.18.00894 By Baocai Zhang and Yihua Zhou, Institute of Genetics and Developmental Biology, Chinese Academy of Sciences Background: Plant cells…