The molecular structure of plant sporopollenin
Sporopollenin is a ubiquitous and extremely chemically inert biopolymer that constitutes the outer wall of all land-plant spores and pollen grains1. Sporopollenin protects the vulnerable plant gametes against a wide range of environmental assaults, and is considered a prerequisite for the migration of early plants onto land2. Despite its importance, the chemical structure of plant sporopollenin has remained elusive1. Using a newly developed thioacidolysis degradative method together with state-of-the-art solid-state NMR techniques, we determined the detailed molecular structure of pine sporopollenin. We show that pine sporopollenin is primarily composed of aliphatic-polyketide-derived polyvinyl alcohol units and 7-O-p-coumaroylated C16 aliphatic units, crosslinked through a distinctive dioxane moiety featuring an acetal. Naringenin was also identified as a minor component of pine sporopollenin. This discovery answers the long-standing question about the chemical make-up of plant sporopollenin, laying the foundation for future investigations of sporopollenin biosynthesis and for the design of new biomimetic polymers with desirable inert properties.
- Research Organization:
- Energy Frontier Research Centers (EFRC) (United States). Center for Lignocellulose Structure and Formation (CLSF); Pennsylvania State Univ., University Park, PA (United States)
- Sponsoring Organization:
- USDOE Office of Science (SC), Basic Energy Sciences (BES)
- DOE Contract Number:
- SC0001090
- OSTI ID:
- 1566613
- Journal Information:
- Nature Plants (Online), Vol. 5, Issue 1; ISSN 2055-0278
- Publisher:
- Nature Publishing Group
- Country of Publication:
- United States
- Language:
- English
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