title: Synthesis of cellulose precursors. The involvement of lipid-linked sugars.
abstract: Particulate preparations from the Chlorophyta Prototheca zopfi catalyze the incorporation of [14C]glucose from UDP-[14C]glucoe into lipids. These lipids have been characterized as lipid-P-glucose, lipid-PP-glucose, and lipid-PP-oligosaccharides. The lipid-linked oligosaccharides were a mixture ranging from a disaccharide to approximately a decasaccharide. Cellulase digestion and periodate oxidation showed that the oligosaccharides seem to be built of beta-1,4-linked glucoses. The lipid moiety had the properties of dolichol. The glucolipids described appeared as precursors of a water-soluble polymer. Treatments of this polymer with hydrolytic enzymes and periodate oxidation that it could be a glycoprotein containing beta-1,4-linked glucoses. When GDP-glucose was added to the incubation mixture, the 14C-labelled soluble polymer became insoluble in hot alkali. This insoluble polymer had the properties expected for cellulose. A scheme is proposed with the reactions involved in the initiation of cellulose biosynthesis.
mesh_terms: D002482:Cellulose / Q000096:biosynthesis*; D000460:Chlorophyta / Q000378:metabolism; D004286:Dolichols / Q000378:metabolism; D006017:Glycolipids / Q000378:metabolism*; D006156:Guanosine Diphosphate Sugars / Q000378:metabolism; D009844:Oligosaccharides / Q000378:metabolism; D011106:Polyisoprenyl Phosphates / Q000494:pharmacology; D013696:Temperature; D014530:Uridine Diphosphate / Q000494:pharmacology; D014532:Uridine Diphosphate Glucose / Q000378:metabolism; D014542:Uridine Monophosphate / Q000494:pharmacology
chemical_list: D004286:Dolichols; D006017:Glycolipids; D006156:Guanosine Diphosphate Sugars; D009844:Oligosaccharides; D011106:Polyisoprenyl Phosphates; D014530:Uridine Diphosphate; D002482:Cellulose; D014542:Uridine Monophosphate; D014532:Uridine Diphosphate Glucose