Obomighie Irabonosi, Prentice Iain J, Lewin-Jones Peter, Bachtiger Fabienne, Ramsay Nathan, Kishi-Itakura Chieko, Goldberg Martin W, Hawkins Tim J, Sprittles James E, Knight Heather, Sosso Gabriele C
Department of Biosciences and Durham Centre for Crop Improvement Technology, Durham University, Durham, UK.
Department of Chemistry, University of Warwick, Coventry, UK.
Commun Biol. 2025 Jan 17;8(1):72. doi: 10.1038/s42003-025-07495-0.
Pectin is a major component of plant cells walls. The extent to which pectin chains crosslink with one another determines crucial properties including cell wall strength, porosity, and the ability of small, biologically significant molecules to access the cell. Despite its importance, significant gaps remain in our comprehension, at the molecular level, of how pectin cross-links influence the mechanical and physical properties of cell walls. This study employs a multidisciplinary approach, combining molecular dynamics simulations, experimental investigations, and mathematical modelling, to elucidate the mechanism of pectin cross-linking and its effect on cell wall porosity. The computational aspects of this work challenge the prevailing egg-box model, favoring instead a zipper model for pectin cross-linking, whilst our experimental work highlights the significant impact of pectin cross-linking on cell wall porosity. This work advances our fundamental understanding of the biochemistry underpinning the structure and function of the plant cell wall. This knowledge has important implications for agricultural biotechnology, informing us about the chemical properties of plant pectins that are best suited for improving crop resilience and amenability to biofuel extraction by modifying the cell wall.
果胶是植物细胞壁的主要成分。果胶链相互交联的程度决定了细胞壁强度、孔隙率以及具有生物学意义的小分子进入细胞的能力等关键特性。尽管果胶很重要，但在分子层面，我们对果胶交联如何影响细胞壁的机械和物理性质的理解仍存在重大差距。本研究采用多学科方法，结合分子动力学模拟、实验研究和数学建模，以阐明果胶交联的机制及其对细胞壁孔隙率的影响。这项工作的计算方面对普遍存在的“蛋盒模型”提出了挑战，转而支持果胶交联的“拉链模型”，而我们的实验工作则突出了果胶交联对细胞壁孔隙率的重大影响。这项工作推进了我们对支撑植物细胞壁结构和功能的生物化学的基本理解。这一知识对农业生物技术具有重要意义，使我们了解最适合通过修饰细胞壁来提高作物抗逆性和生物燃料提取适应性的植物果胶的化学性质。
