Generation and characterization of two new monoclonal antibodies produced by immunizing mice with plant fructans: New tools for immunolocalization of β-(2 → 1) and β-(2 → 6) fructans.

Fructans are water-soluble polymers of fructose in which fructose units are linked by β-(2 → 1) and/or β-(2 → 6) linkages. In plants, they are synthesized in the vacuole but have also been reported in the apoplastic sap under abiotic stress suggesting that they are involved in plasmalemma protection and in plant-microbial interactions. However, the lack of fructan-specific antibodies currently prevents further study of their role and the associated mechanisms of action, which could be elucidated thanks to their immunolocalization.