Plant cell walls

This work is a comprehensive collection of articles that cover aspects of cell wall research in the genomic era. Some 2500 genes are involved in some way in wall biogenesis and turnover, from generation of substrates, to polysaccharide and lignin synthesis, assembly, and rearrangement in the wall. Although a great number of genes and gene families remain to be characterized, this issue provides a census of the genes that have been discovered so far. The articles comprising this issue not only illustrate the enormous progress made in identifying the wealth of wall-related genes but they also show the future directions and how far we have to go. As cell walls are an enormously important source of raw material, we anticipate that cell-wall-related genes are of significant economic importance. Examples include the modification of pectin-cross-linking or cell--cell adhesion to increase shelf life of fruits and vegetables, the enhancement of dietary fiber contents of cereals, the improvement of yield and quality of fibers, and the relative allocation of carbon to wall biomass for use as biofuels. The book is intended for academic and professional scientists working in the area of plant biology as well as material chemists and engineers, and food scientists who define new ways to use cell walls.

Overview. Molecular biology of the plant cell wall: Finding the genes that define structure, architecture and wall dynamics, N. Carpita, et al. Cytology and metabolism. Pectin: Cell biology and prospects for the functional analysis, W.G.T. Willats, et al. Carbon partitioning to cellulose synthesis, C.H. Haigler, et al. Gene and protein structure. A census of carbohydrate-active enzymes in the genome of Arabidopsis thaliana, B. Henrissat, et al. Three-dimensional structures, substrate specificities and biological functions of beta-D-glucan endo- and exohydrolases from higher plants, M. Hrmova, G.B. Fincher. Primary wall wynthesis. Molecular Genetics of Nucleotide Sugar Interconversion Pathways, W.-D. Reiter, G. Vanzin. Golgi enzymes that synthesize plant cell wall polysaccharides: Finding and evaluating candidates in the genomic era, R. Perrin, et al. Integrative approaches to determining Csl function, T.A. Richmond, C.R. Somerville. Mixed-Linkage beta-Glucan synthase and the CesA gene family in cereals, C. Vergara, N. Carpita. The complex structures of arabinogalactan-proteins and the journey towards understanding function, Y.M. Gaspar, et al. Growth, Signaling and Defense. The molecular basis of plant cell wall extension, C.P. Darley, et al. WAKs: Cell wall associated kinases linking the cytoplasm to the extracellular matrix, C.M. Anderson, et al. Secondary wall synthesis. Mutations of the secondary wall, S. Turner, et al. Differential expression of cell-wall-related genes during formation of tracheary elements in the Zinnia mesophyll cell system, D. Milioni, et al. Unraveling cell wall formation in the woody dicot stem, E.J. Mellerowicz, et al. Functional genomics and cell wall biosynthesis in loblolly pine, R. Whetten, et al. Cell Wall Biotechnology. Enabling technologies for manipulating multiple genes on complex pathways, C. Halpin, et al. Cell wall metabolism in fruit softening and quality, and its manipulation in transgenic plants, D.A. Brummell, M.H. Harpster.