Abstract
Summary Miscanthus spp. are promising lignocellulosic energy crops, but cell wall recalcitrance to deconstruction still hinders their widespread use as bioenergy and biomaterial feedstocks. Identification of cell wall characteristics desirable for biorefining applications is crucial for lignocellulosic biomass improvement. However, the task of scoring biomass quality is often complicated by the lack of a reference for a given feedstock.A multidimensional cell wall analysis was performed to generate a reference profile for leaf and stem biomass from several miscanthus genotypes harvested at three developmentally distinct time points. A comprehensive suite of 155 monoclonal antibodies was used to monitor changes in distribution, structure and extractability of noncellulosic cell wall matrix glycans.Glycan microarrays complemented with immunohistochemistry elucidated the nature of compositional variation, and in situ distribution of carbohydrate epitopes. Key observations demonstrated that there are crucial differences in miscanthus cell wall glycomes, which may impact biomass amenability to deconstruction.For the first time, variations in miscanthus cell wall glycan components were comprehensively characterized across different harvests, organs and genotypes, to generate a representative reference profile for miscanthus cell wall biomass. Ultimately, this portrait of the miscanthus cell wall will help to steer breeding and genetic engineering strategies for the development of superior energy crops.
Highlights
Global hydrocarbon availability has reportedly been increased thanks to modern hydraulic fracturing (Norris et al, 2016)
Variations in miscanthus cell wall glycan components were comprehensively characterized across different harvests, organs and genotypes, to generate a representative reference profile for miscanthus cell wall biomass
Key differences in miscanthus cell wall fine structures and composition were highlighted between organs and harvests
Summary
Global hydrocarbon availability has reportedly been increased thanks to modern hydraulic fracturing (Norris et al, 2016). Dedicated secondgeneration bioenergy crops can provide such biomass, and the Miscanthus genus contains species with high potential as sustainable biomass providers (Carroll & Somerville, 2009). Considering their high biomass yields, perenniality, C4 carbon fixation, potential for soil carbon sequestration, reduced soil erosion and low fertilizer requirement (Clifton-Brown et al, 2013; van der Weijde et al, 2013), the most relevant miscanthus varieties include M. sinensis, M. sacchariflorus and M. Senescing miscanthus remobilizes nutrients from above-ground organs to rhizomes For this reason, only completely senesced plants are usually harvested, ensuring crop regrowth in the subsequent season
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