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Loosening of plant cell walls by expansins

Nature volume 407, pages 321–326 (2000)Cite this article

Abstract

Plant cell walls are the starting materials for many commercial products, from lumber, paper and textiles to thickeners, films and explosives. The cell wall is secreted by each cell in the plant body, forming a thin fibreglass-like network with remarkable strength and flexibility. During growth, plant cells secrete a protein called expansin, which unlocks the network of wall polysaccharides, permitting turgor-driven cell enlargement. Germinating grass pollen also secretes an unusual expansin that loosens maternal cell walls to aid penetration of the stigma by the pollen tube. Expansin's action has puzzling implications for plant cell-wall structure. The recent explosion of gene sequences and expression data has given new hints of additional biological functions for expansins.

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Figure 1: Diagram of extensometer assays.
Figure 2: Phylogenetic tree of rice α- and β-expansins.
Figure 3: A model of expansin's wall-loosening action.
Figure 4: Predicted structure of expansin protein.

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Acknowledgements

Supported by the US National Science Foundation, the Department of Energy and the Department of Agriculture.

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  1. Department of Biology, 208 Mueller Laboratory, Pennsylvania State University, University Park, 16802, Pennsylvania, USA

    Daniel J. Cosgrove

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Cosgrove, D. Loosening of plant cell walls by expansins. Nature 407, 321–326 (2000). https://doi.org/10.1038/35030000

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