On the cross-sectional shape of the cellulose crystallites in the tunicate Halocynthia papillosa

Abstract

The only form of cellulose which could unequivocally be ascribed to the animal kingdom is the tunicin that occurs in the tests of the tunicates. Recently, high-resolution solid-state l3C NMR revealed that tunicin belongs to the Iβ form of cellulose as opposed to the Iα form found in Valonia and bacterial celluloses. The high perfection of the tunicin crystallites led us to study its crosssectional shape and to compare it with the shape of those in Valonia ventricosa (V.v.), the goal being to relate the cross-section of cellulose crystallites with the two allomorphs Iα and Iβ.In the present work the source of tunicin was the test of the ascidian Halocvnthia papillosa (H.p.). Diffraction contrast imaging in the bright field mode was applied on ultrathin sections of the V.v. cell wall and H.p. test with cellulose crystallites perpendicular to the plane of the sections. The electron microscope, a Philips 400T, was operated at 120 kV in a low intensity beam condition.