Search bioRxiv⌕ Search
Home/Archive/bioRxiv

bioRxiv · 10.1101/2021.12.03.471127

Pectin self-assembly and its disruption by water: Insights into plant cell wall mechanics

John, J.·Ray, D.·Aswal, V. K.·Deshpande, A. P.·Varughese, S.
View original source ↗Export metadata ↓

Abstract

Plant cell walls undergo multiple cycles of dehydration and rehydration during their life. Calcium crosslinked low methoxy pectin is a major constituent of plant cell walls. Understanding the dehydration-rehydration behavior of pectin gels may shed light on the water transport and mechanics of plant cells. In this work, we report the contributions of microstructure to the mechanics of pectin-Ca gels subjected to different extents of dehydration and subsequent rehydration. This is investigated using a pectin gel composition that forms egg-box bundles, a characteristic feature of the microstructure of low methoxy pectin-Ca gels. Large Amplitude Oscillatory Shear (LAOS) rheology along with Small Angle Neutron Scattering and Near Infrared (NIR) spectroscopy on pectin gels are used to elucidate the mechanical and microstructural changes during dehydration-rehydration cycles. As the extent of dehydration increase, the reswelling ability, strain-stiffening behavior and the yield strain decreases. These effects are more prominent at faster rates of dehydration and are not completely reversible upon rehydration to the initial undried state. Microstructural changes due to the aggregation of egg-box bundles and single chains and the associated changes in the water configurations lead to these irreversible changes.

Source connections

Explore related subjects

plant biologyPreprint

Keep this discovery

Explore connections, maps & timelines

BibTeXRIS

John, J., Ray, D., Aswal, V. K., Deshpande, A. P., Varughese, S.. 2021-12-04. Pectin self-assembly and its disruption by water: Insights into plant cell wall mechanics. https://doi.org/10.1101/2021.12.03.471127

Cite the original work for its findings. Save a collection to share your selection of sources.

KEEP EXPLORING

Related preprints

bioRxiv2026

Growth, yield, and quality of hot pepper (Capsicum annuum L.) as affected by the combined application of liquid bio-slurry and NPS fertilizer rates in Kucha, Gamo zone, south Ethiopia

Hot pepper (Capsicum annuum L.) is a key cash and nutritional crop in Ethiopia, yet its productivity remains constrained by inadequate and imbalanced soil nutrient management. Therefore, the field experiment was conducted in Kucha woreda, Gamo Zone, South Ethiopia, during the 2024/25 cropping season to investigate the effect of liquid bio-slurry and NPS fertilizer rates on growth, yield and quality of hot pepper. The experiment consisted of 16 treatments arranged in a factorial combination of four liquid bio-slurry (LBS) rates (0, 20, 40, and 60 m3 ha-1) and four NPS fertilizer rates (0, 75, 150, and 225 kg ha-1) using a randomized complete block design with three replications. All experimental data were collected following standard agronomic procedures and subjected to analysis of variance using GenStat statistical software (18th edition). The results revealed that both the main and interaction effects of liquid bio-slurry and NPS significantly (p < 0.01) influenced phenological, growth, yield, and quality parameters. The combined application of 150 kg ha-1 NPS and 60 m3 ha-1 LBS produced the highest marketable dry fruit yield (2.94 t ha-1) and total dry fruit yield (3.16 t ha-1), representing a 129.69% yield advantage over the control (1.28 t ha-1) in the case of marketable dry fruit yield. The findings demonstrate that integrated nutrient management using combined LBS and NPS fertilizers significantly enhanced the productivity and quality of hot pepper. Therefore, the application of 150 kg ha-1 NPS combined with 60 m3 ha-1 liquid bio-slurry is recommended for improved hot pepper production for the study area and similar agro-ecological conditions.

plant biology↗
bioRxiv2026

Robust planar morphogenesis in leaf-like organs requires callose-dependent coordination of division and growth

Planar organs, such as leaves, are key developmental innovations underlying the evolutionary success of plants. In vascular plants, building a planar organ requires coordinating cell division and growth both within the organ plane and across multiple, mechanically distinct cell layers. Phyllids, the leaf-like organs of bryophytes, typically consist of a single cell layer and offer a minimal system to decouple in-plane growth coordination from inter-layer mechanics. Here, we investigate how robust planar morphogenesis is achieved in phyllids, using the moss Physcomitrium patens as a bryophyte model. We show that impaired cytokinesis, caused by the loss of a callose synthase gene, disrupts growth gradients, ultimately yielding smaller, non-planar organs of variable shape. Combining quantitative live imaging with computational modeling, we show that the severity of shape defects in mutants depends on the spatial distribution and developmental timing of local growth arrests. These findings reveal how callose-dependent coordination between cell division and in-plane growth prevents mechanical conflicts and maintains planarity in a monolayered plant organ.

plant biology↗
bioRxiv2026

SEC16A/MAG5-mediated ER export shapes ABA receptor homeostasis

The phytohormone abscisic acid (ABA) controls plant adaptation to environmental stress through PYR/PYL/RCAR receptors. Regulated receptor turnover through ubiquitination and endosomal trafficking, including ESCRT-dependent vacuolar degradation, is a major mechanism controlling ABA signalling. However, whether ABA receptor homeostasis is established during the early secretory pathway remains unknown. Using complementary cell biological and biochemical approaches, we define a constitutive early secretory pool of the ABA receptors PYR1 and PYL4 associated with the endoplasmic reticulum (ER) and the Golgi apparatus (GA). Genetic, cell biological and pharmacological analyses reveal that the COPII scaffold protein SEC16A (also known as MAG5) is required for the proper trafficking and homeostasis of this receptor pool. Loss of MAG5 causes intracellular receptor accumulation, impaired trafficking towards late endosomal compartments and enhanced ABA signalling without affecting endogenous ABA accumulation. Together, our findings establish the early secretory pathway as an integral component of the ABA signalling network and demonstrate that MAG5-mediated ER export shapes ABA receptor homeostasis by coordinating receptor trafficking throughout the endomembrane system, revealing the ER as a key regulatory compartment for ABA receptor homeostasis.

plant biology↗