Enzymes Involved in Plant Cell Wall Synthesis

本项目结合了分离、蛋白质标记和抗体技术来鉴定和纯化豌豆高尔基体和质膜葡聚糖合成酶系统的多肽成分。这项工作使鉴定和克隆相关基因序列成为可能，从而进一步研究植物细胞壁合成和高尔基体功能调控的分子方面。细胞壁多糖通常是植物代谢最丰富的产物。它们的生物合成是植物生长的特征和核心，就像结构蛋白合成对动物生长一样。细胞壁合成必须与细胞增大有关；在生长中的组织中，它被上调以响应生长刺激激素和环境信号。细胞壁合成也是植物细胞分化的一个重要方面。在厚壁特化细胞如表皮细胞、维管分子、纤维和硬核细胞的发育过程中，合成明显上调。因此，了解壁多糖合成酶的控制及其编码基因将使我们更接近植物细胞生物学和发育的核心。

This project employs a combination of fractionation, protein labeling, and antibody techniques to identify and purify polypeptide components of pea Golgi and plasma membrane glucan synthase systems. This work makes possible the identification and cloning of the responsible gene sequences so that molecular aspects of the regulation of plant cell wall synthesis and Golgi function can be further investigated. Cell wall polysaccharides are generally the most abundant products of plant metabolism. Their biosynthesis is as characteristic and central to plant growth as structural protein synthesis is to the growth of animals. Wall synthesis must be correlated with cell enlargement; in growing tissues it is up- regulated in response to growth-stimulating hormones and environmental signals. Wall synthesis is also a prominent aspect of plant cell differentiation. Synthesis is conspicuously up- regulated during the development of thick-walled specialized cells such as epidermal cells, vascular elements, fibers and sclereids. Thus, understanding the control of wall polysaccharide-synthesizing enzymes and the genes that encode them would bring us close to the heart of plant cell biology and development.