Lignin monomer composition affects Arabidopsis cell-wall degradability after liquid hot water pretreatment.

Background: Lignin is embedded in the plant cell wall matrix, and impedes the enzymatic saccharification of lignocellulosic feedstocks. To investigate whether enzymatic digestibility of cell wall materials can be improved by altering the relative abundance of the two major lignin monomers, guaiacyl (G) and syringyl (S) subunits, we compared the degradability of cell wall material from wild-type Arabidopsis thaliana with a mutant line and a genetically modified line, the lignins of which are enriched in G and S subunits, respectively.

Results: Arabidopsis tissue containing G- and S-rich lignins had the same saccharification performance as the wild type when subjected to enzyme hydrolysis without pretreatment.