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The present study is focused on the development of a composition based on three pectin metal complexes (NaMg‐PG, NaZn‐PG and NaCr‐PG) at a mass ratio 7:0.3:0.001. It was evaluated by the methods of infrared spectroscopy (IR spectroscopy), atomic force microscopy (AFM), dynamic light scattering (DLS) and TEM‐EDS. The data, obtained by simultaneous thermal analysis and Fourier transform IR spectroscopy, showed that water was the main component of the gas phase at the first stage of mass loss of the specified compounds, whereas further heating led to decarboxylation and degradation. The results of Forced Swim Test (FST) showed that the specified composition at the dose of 50–100 mg/kg contributed to the stimulation of an organism's adaptive capacity under intensive physical loads and could be considered as a potential adaptogen and stimulator of erythropoiesis that could normalize metabolism. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

We designed stable and highly reproducible hydrogels by external unidirectional diffusion of Fe 2+ ions into aqueous solutions of polygalacturonate (polyGal) chains. The Fe 2+ ions act as cross-linkers between the Gal units in such a way that both the molar ratio R ([Fe 2+ ]/[Gal units] = 0.25) and the mesh size of the polyGal network at the local scale (ξ = 75 ± 5 Å) have constant values within the whole gel, as respectively determined by titration and Small Angle Neutron Scattering. From macroscopic point of view, there is a progressive decrease of polyGal concentration from the part of the gel formed in the early stages of the gelation process, which is homogeneous, transparent and whose Young modulus has a high value of ∼10 5  Pa, up to the part of the gel formed in the late stages, which is heterogeneous, highly turbid and has a much lower Young modulus of ∼10 3  Pa. Since the local organization of the polyGal chains remains identical all along the hydrogels, this macroscopic concentration gradient originates from the formation of heterogeneities at a mesoscopic length scale during the gelation process. In addition, X-ray Absorption Spectroscopy measurements remarkably reveal that Fe 2+ ions keep their +II oxidation state in the whole gels once they have cross-linked the Gal units. These polyGal hydrogels thus protect iron against oxidation and could be used for iron fortification. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Esterified acid soluble pectins from flax (Linun usitatissimumL.) were degraded either with HCl or pectin lyase. Centrifugation and 2-propanol precipitation led to the isolation of two low molecular weight polygalacturonates after acid hydrolysis of pectins. However, after pectin lyase digestion and purification by size-exclusion HPLC,1H NMR analyses indicated that acetylated hairy regions, large methylated and acetylated oligogalacturonides together with small unsubstituted oligogalacturonides were produced. Thus, in a few steps, a panel of substituted neutral and acidic oligosaccharides was produced from a raw plant material. Such oligosaccharides could be useful for further fractionations such as chemical saponification and enzymatic removal of neutral sugar chains from the hairy regions. The procedures used for pectin extraction, for degradation, and for the purification of fragments seem appropriate for large-scale production of biologically active oligosaccharides from flax. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Cell walls isolated from dicotyledon tissues compete with natural plant host sites for Agrobacterium tumefaciens (strain B6) when co-inoculated with infectious bacteria, thereby reducing tumor initiation. Removal of the pectic fraction from the cell walls results in loss of inhibition and the soluble pectic fraction is inhibitory. On treatment with pectin methyl transferase plus S-adenosyl-L-methionine these cell walls become less inhibitory and this change is reversible by pectinesterase. Cell walls isolated from monocotyledons, crown gall tumors or embryonic dicotyledons do not compete for Agrobacterium in the infection assay. These cell walls, become inhibitory on treatment with pectinesterase and this is partially reversed by pectin methyl transferase. These data indicate that the pectic portion of the host cell wall is involved in the Agrobacterium-host adherence which is essential for tumor initiation and that the degree of methylation of polygalacturonic acid is critical to this adherence. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The gelling subunit of alginate, the major cell-wall polysaccharide of brown algae, was used as a molecular marker for identification of this cell-wall carbohydrate subunit at the cellular level. Short polyguluronate chains were conjugated to fluorescein and used as a probe to identify the gelling regions of alginate in tissue sections from a brown alga. The specificity of the probe for gelling subunits was demonstrated by lack of cell-wall labelling in the absence of calcium, correlation between divalent-cation binding affinities of polyguluronate with labelling intensity, and lack of labelling by fluorescein-conjugated nongelling subunits. The probe labelling-pattern also differed from sulfated fucan distribution. Extracellular matrix and cell walls were labelled on sections of vegetative blade, stipe and reproductive frond of Fucus gardneri Silva. Probe labelling was rapid, being virtually complete within 5 min. Probe labelling in seawater differed markedly from labelling at lower ionic strength and is interpreted as reflecting alginategelling properties in natural conditions. High-and low-affinity binding sites are discussed in terms of gelling-subunit length and steric availability. Fluorescein-conjugated polygalacturonate, which also forms calcium dimers, labelled extracellular alginate by formation of mixed polygalacturonate-polyguluronate dimers. Binding by the alginate hybridization probe differs from nucleic-acid hybridization in divalent-cation bridging and the lack of both a conformational transition and polymer polarity. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Pectic polysaccharides are major components of the plant cell wall matrix and are known to perform many important functions for the plant. In the course of our studies on the putative role of pectic polysaccharides in the control of cell elongation, we have examined the distribution of polygalacturonans in the epidermal and cortical parenchyma cell walls of flax seedling hypocotyls. Pectic components have been detected with (1) the nickel (Ni2+) staining method to visualize polygalacturonates, (2) monoclonal antibodies specific to low (JIM5) and highly methylesterified (JIM7) pectins and (3) a combination of subtractive treatment and PATAg (periodic acid-thiocarbohydrazide-silver proteinate) staining. In parallel, calcium (Ca2+) distribution has been imaged using SIMS microscopy (secondary ion mass spectrometry) on cryo-prepared samples and TEM (transmission electron microscopy) after precipitation of calcium with potassium pyroantimonate. Our results show that, at the tissular level, polygalacturonans are mainly located in the epidermal cell walls, as revealed by the Ni2+ staining and immunofluorescence microscopy with JIM5 and JIM7 antibodies. In parallel, Ca2+ distribution points to a higher content of this cation in the epidermal walls compared to cortical parenchyma walls. At the ultrastructural level, immunogold labeling with JIM5 and JIM7 antibodies shows a differential distribution of pectic polysaccharides within cell walls of both tissues. The acidic polygalacturonans (recognized by JIM5) held through calcium bridges are mainly found in the outer part of the external wall of epidermal cells. In contrast, the labeling of methylesterified pectins with JIM7 is slightly higher in the inner part than in the outer part of the wall. In the cortical parenchyma cells, acidic pectins are restricted to the cell junctions and the wall areas in contact with the air-spaces, whereas methylesterified pectins are evenly distributed all over the wall. In addition, the pyroantimonate precipitation method reveals a clear difference in the Ca2+ distribution in the epidermal wall, suggesting that this cation is more tightly bound to acidic pectins in the outer part than in the inner part of that wall. Our findings show that the distribution of pectic polysaccharides and the nature of their linkages differ not only between tissues, but also within a single wall of a given cell in flax hypocotyls. The differential distribution of pectins and Ca2+ in the external epidermal wall suggests a specific control of the demethylation of pectins and a central role for Ca2+ in this regulation. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]