Cellulose

Cellulose consists of several thousand glucose molecules linked end to end. The chemical links between the individual glucose subunits give each cellulose molecule a flat ribbonlike structure that allows adjacent molecules to band laterally together into microfibrils with lengths ranging from two to seven micrometres. Cellulose fibrils are synthesized by enzymes floating in the cell membrane and are arranged in a rosette configuration. Each rosette appears capable of “spinning” a microfibril into the cell wall. During this process, as new glucose subunits are added to the growing end of the fibril, the rosette is pushed around the cell on the surface of the cell membrane, and its cellulose fibril becomes wrapped around the protoplast. Thus, each plant cell can be viewed as making its own cellulose fibril cocoon.

Matrix polysaccharides

The two major classes of cell wall matrix polysaccharides are the hemicelluloses and the pectic polysaccharides, or pectins. Both are synthesized in the Golgi apparatus, brought to the cell surface in small vesicles, and secreted into the cell wall.

Hemicelluloses consist of glucose molecules arranged end to end as in cellulose, with short side chains of xylose and other uncharged sugars attached to one side of the ribbon. The other side of the ribbon binds tightly to the surface of cellulose fibrils, thereby coating the microfibrils with hemicellulose and preventing them from adhering together in an uncontrolled manner. Hemicellulose molecules have been shown to regulate the rate at which primary cell walls expand during growth.

The heterogeneous, branched, and highly hydrated pectic polysaccharides differ from hemicelluloses in important respects. Most notably, they are negatively charged because of galacturonic acid residues, which, together with rhamnose sugar molecules, form the linear backbone of all pectic polysaccharides. The backbone contains stretches of pure galacturonic acid residues interrupted by segments in which galacturonic acid and rhamnose residues alternate; attached to these latter segments are complex, branched sugar side chains. Because of their negative charge, pectic polysaccharides bind tightly to positively charged ions, or cations. In cell walls, calcium ions cross-link the stretches of pure galacturonic acid residues tightly, while leaving the rhamnose-containing segments in a more open, porous configuration. This cross-linking creates the semirigid gel properties characteristic of the cell wall matrix—a process exploited in the preparation of jellied preserves.

Proteins

Although plant cell walls contain only small amounts of protein, they serve a number of important functions. The most prominent group are the hydroxyproline-rich glycoproteins, shaped like rods with connector sites, of which extensin is a prominent example. Extensin contains 45 percent hydroxyproline and 14 percent serine residues distributed along its length. Every hydroxyproline residue carries a short side chain of arabinose sugars, and most serine residues carry a galactose sugar; this gives rise to long molecules, resembling bottle brushes, that are secreted into the cell wall toward the end of primary-wall formation and become covalently cross-linked into a mesh at the time that cell growth stops. Plant cells may control their ultimate size by regulating the time at which this cross-linking of extensin molecules occurs.

In addition to the structural proteins, cell walls contain a variety of enzymes. Most notable are those that cross-link extensin, lignin, cutin, and suberin molecules into networks. Other enzymes help protect plants against fungal pathogens by breaking fragments off of the cell walls of the fungi. The fragments in turn induce defense responses in underlying cells. The softening of ripe fruit and dropping of leaves in the autumn are brought about by cell wall-degrading enzymes.

Plastics

Cell wall plastics such as lignin, cutin, and suberin all contain a variety of organic compounds cross-linked into tight three-dimensional networks that strengthen cell walls and make them more resistant to fungal and bacterial attack. Lignin is the general name for a diverse group of polymers of aromatic alcohols. Deposited mostly in secondary cell walls and providing the rigidity of terrestrial vascular plants, it accounts for up to 30 percent of a plant’s dry weight. The diversity of cross-links between the polymers—and the resulting tightness—makes lignin a formidable barrier to the penetration of most microbes.

Cutin and suberin are complex biopolyesters composed of fatty acids and aromatic compounds. Cutin is the major component of the cuticle, the waxy, water-repelling surface layer of cell walls exposed to the environment aboveground. By reducing the wetability of leaves and stems—and thereby affecting the ability of fungal spores to germinate—it plays an important part in the defense strategy of plants. Suberin serves with waxes as a surface barrier of underground parts. Its synthesis is also stimulated in cells close to wounds, thereby sealing off the wound surfaces and protecting underlying cells from dehydration.

Plasmodesmata

Similar to the gap junction of animal cells is the plasmodesma, a channel passing through the cell wall and allowing direct molecular communication between adjacent plant cells. Plasmodesmata are lined with cell membrane, in effect uniting all connected cells with one continuous cell membrane. Running down the middle of each channel is a thin membranous tube that connects the endoplasmic reticula (ER) of the two cells. This structure is a remnant of the ER of the original parent cell, which, as the parent cell divided, was caught in the developing cell plate.

Although the precise mechanisms are not fully understood, the plasmodesma is thought to regulate the passage of small molecules such as salts, sugars, and amino acids by constricting or dilating the openings at each end of the channel.

Oligosaccharides with regulatory functions

The discovery of cell wall fragments with regulatory functions opened a new era in plant research. For years scientists had been puzzled by the chemical complexity of cell wall polysaccharides, which far exceeds the structural requirements of plant cell walls. The answer came when it was found that specific fragments of cell wall polysaccharides, called oligosaccharins, are able to induce specific responses in plant cells and tissues. One such fragment, released by enzymes used by fungi to break down plant cell walls, consists of a linear polymer of 10 to 12 galacturonic acid residues. Exposure of plant cells to such fragments induces them to produce antibiotics known as phytoalexins. In other experiments it has been shown that exposing strips of tobacco stem cells to a different type of cell wall fragment leads to the growth of roots; other fragments lead to the formation of stems, and yet others to the production of flowers. In all instances the concentration of oligosaccharins required to bring about the observed responses is equal to that of hormones in animal cells; indeed, oligosaccharins may be viewed as the oligosaccharide hormones of plants.