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SUMMARY:Breaking down the (cell) walls: simplifying xylan in Arabidopsis -
  Jenny Mortimer\, Dupree Lab\, Biochemistry Dept.
DTSTART:20110204T130000Z
DTEND:20110204T133000Z
UID:TALK27489@talks.cam.ac.uk
CONTACT:15560
DESCRIPTION:Xylan is one of the most abundant polymers on the planet.  It 
 is the major non-cellulosic polysaccharide in angiosperms\, and it could p
 rovide more than a third of the sugars for lignocellulosic biofuels.  Unli
 ke cellulose\, which is composed of easily fermented hexoses\, xylan consi
 sts of a pentose backbone\, with uronic acid and pentose branches\, making
  it difficult to breakdown and ferment.  In addition\, the xylan coats the
  cellulose fibrils\, hindering the activity of cellulases.  Therefore\, xy
 lan is currently considered to be an obstruction to lignocellulosic biofue
 l production.  The work I will describe here identified the genes responsi
 ble for xylan branch addition in Arabidopsis.  We generated plants with un
 branched xylan\, and tested the effects of an altered cell wall structure 
 on plant growth.  The simplified xylan proved to be more easily extractabl
 e from the cell wall\, and required fewer enzymes to hydrolyse it to monos
 accharides.  This may have implications for the production costs of lignoc
 ellulosic biofuels.
LOCATION:Department of Plant Sciences\, Large Lecture Theatre
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