Question

What physical and chemical processes allow for the structural organisation of cellulose in the plant cell wall? Discussing examples where an understanding of cellulose organisation has practical and economic implications, explain how cellulose organisation is important for the plant.

Answer 1

Structural organization of cellulose in plant cell wall:-

The cellulose is a structural polysaccharide which is a major component of tough cell wall and surrounds the plant cell wall. The cellulose structurally are molecules that are arranged parallel to each other and are joined with help of hydrogen bonds. They form cable like bonds with other cellulose molecules that helps in providing strong support. The cellulose are tightly linked to each other into a strong network of cross linking glycans and the cellulose network is embedded in pectin. It is highly hydrated network of polysaccharides which is rich in galacturonic acid.

The cellulose helps in providing the much needed tensile strength as each linear chain of at least 500 glucose residues are covalently linked to one another and is stabilized by hydrogen bonds. The intermolecular hydrogen bonds that are present between the cellulose molecules cause them to strongly adhere to overlapping parallel arrays and it forms a bundle of about 40 cellulose chains.

Cellulose organization is important for plants as it helps in providing tensile strength and supports to the cell wall. It helps in maintaining the mechanical strength of the and it prevents the cell from bursting open. This also helps in maintaining the turgor pressure and regulating the movement of ions and water.