Sugar Composition and Molecular Weight Distribution of Cell Wall Polysaccharides in Outer and Inner Tissues from Segments of Dark Grown Squash (Cucurbita maxima Duch.) Hypocotyls

Abstract

The elongation growth of stem segments is determined by the outer cell layers (epidermis and collenchyma). We measured the sugar composition and molecular weight distribution of pectin and hemicellulose fractions obtained from inner and outer tissues of squash (Cucurbita maxima Duch.) hypocotyls. In addition, we studied the changes in these parameters after a 9 hour period of incubation of the segments. The results show that outer tissues have higher molecular weight pectin and hemicellulose compared to inner tissues (2-3 times higher). Incubation results in a 13 to 25% decrease in the amount of pectin and hemicellulose in inner tissues and an increase of 11 to 32% in the outer tissues. This increase in the outer tissues is accompanied by a decrease in the molecular weight of some of the components. These results clearly show that cell wall metabolism during elongation growth differs markedly in inner and outer tissues, and that future studies on the effect of auxin need to take these differences into account.