Ghent University, Department of Plant Biotechnology and Bioinformatics, Technologiepark 71, 9052 Ghent, Belgium; VIB Center for Plant Systems Biology, Technologiepark 71, 9052 Ghent, Belgium.
Ghent University, Department of Plant Biotechnology and Bioinformatics, Technologiepark 71, 9052 Ghent, Belgium; VIB Center for Plant Systems Biology, Technologiepark 71, 9052 Ghent, Belgium.
Plant Commun. 2022 Nov 14;3(6):100465. doi: 10.1016/j.xplc.2022.100465. Epub 2022 Oct 27.
Wood is an abundant and renewable feedstock for the production of pulp, fuels, and biobased materials. However, wood is recalcitrant toward deconstruction into cellulose and simple sugars, mainly because of the presence of lignin, an aromatic polymer that shields cell-wall polysaccharides. Hence, numerous research efforts have focused on engineering lignin amount and composition to improve wood processability. Here, we focus on results that have been obtained by engineering the lignin biosynthesis and branching pathways in forest trees to reduce cell-wall recalcitrance, including the introduction of exotic lignin monomers. In addition, we draw general conclusions from over 20 years of field trial research with trees engineered to produce less or altered lignin. We discuss possible causes and solutions for the yield penalty that is often associated with lignin engineering in trees. Finally, we discuss how conventional and new breeding strategies can be combined to develop elite clones with desired lignin properties. We conclude this review with priorities for the development of commercially relevant lignin-engineered trees.
木材是生产纸浆、燃料和生物基材料的丰富可再生原料。然而，木材难以分解为纤维素和简单糖，主要是因为存在木质素，木质素是一种芳香族聚合物，可保护细胞壁多糖。因此，许多研究工作都集中在工程木质素的数量和组成上，以提高木材的可加工性。在这里，我们重点介绍通过工程化林木木质素生物合成和支链途径来降低细胞壁顽固性的研究成果，包括引入外来木质素单体。此外，我们还从 20 多年来对木质素含量降低或木质素组成改变的林木进行田间试验研究中得出了一般性结论。我们讨论了与林木木质素工程相关的产量下降的可能原因和解决方案。最后，我们讨论了如何结合传统和新的育种策略来开发具有所需木质素特性的优良无性系。我们以开发具有商业相关木质素工程的树木的优先事项结束了这篇综述。
