Copenhagen Plant Science Center, Department of Plant & Environmental Sciences, University of Copenhagen, Thorvaldsensvej 40, 1871 Frederiksberg, Denmark.
Copenhagen Plant Science Center, Department of Plant & Environmental Sciences, University of Copenhagen, Thorvaldsensvej 40, 1871 Frederiksberg, Denmark; Joint International Research Laboratory of Metabolic & Developmental Sciences, State Key Laboratory of Hybrid Rice, SJTU-University of Adelaide Joint Centre for Agriculture and Health, School of Life Sciences and Biotechnology, Shanghai Jiao Tong University, Shanghai, China.
Curr Biol. 2023 Apr 10;33(7):R251-R254. doi: 10.1016/j.cub.2023.01.044.
Cellulose is the chief constituent of the plant cell wall and therefore is the most abundant biopolymer on Earth. However, cellulose synthesis is not limited to the plant kingdom: it is also found in a wide variety of bacteria, as well as in oomycetes, algae, slime mold, and urochordates, which are the only animals that synthesize cellulose. Nevertheless, cellulose synthesis has been mainly studied in plants and bacteria. In plants, cellulose confers mechanical support and protection against environmental stresses, and guides anisotropic cell growth. In bacteria, cellulose secretion is associated with biofilm formation, which protects cells from stresses or host immune responses and allows for community synergy in colonizing surfaces and capturing nutrients. In the context of our society, cellulose is an important part of woody plant biomass and is thus a renewable resource crucial for many industries, whereas bacterial cellulose is used for a plethora of biomedical and bioengineering applications. In addition, biofilms can reduce the susceptibility of bacteria to antibacterial agents and thus increase infection risk; understanding the molecular mechanism behind cellulose synthesis and biofilm formation is therefore of prime importance.In this primer, we aim to highlight the main differences as well as the common features of the molecular mechanism shared by the many species synthesizing cellulose across kingdoms.
纤维素是植物细胞壁的主要成分，因此是地球上最丰富的生物聚合物。然而，纤维素的合成并不仅限于植物界：它也存在于各种细菌中，以及卵菌、藻类、粘菌和尾索动物中，这些动物是唯一合成纤维素的动物。尽管如此，纤维素的合成主要在植物和细菌中进行研究。在植物中，纤维素赋予其机械支撑和对环境胁迫的保护，并指导各向异性的细胞生长。在细菌中，纤维素的分泌与生物膜的形成有关，生物膜可以保护细胞免受应激或宿主免疫反应的影响，并允许在表面定植和捕获营养物时进行群落协同作用。在我们的社会背景下，纤维素是木质植物生物质的重要组成部分，因此是许多行业的可再生资源，而细菌纤维素则被广泛应用于生物医学和生物工程领域。此外，生物膜会降低细菌对抗菌剂的敏感性，从而增加感染风险；因此，了解纤维素合成和生物膜形成背后的分子机制至关重要。在本入门中，我们旨在强调在多个合成纤维素的物种之间共享的分子机制的主要差异和共同特征。
