Plant Cell Wall Composition Research Articles

OsTMF attenuates cold tolerance by affecting cell wall properties in rice.

Plant cell wall composition and structure can be modified as plants adapt to environmental stresses; however, the underlying regulatory mechanisms remain elusive. Here, we report that OsTMF, a homologue of the human TATA modulatory factor (TMF) in rice (Oryza sativa) and highly conserved in plants, negatively regulates cold tolerance through modification of cell wall properties. Cold stress increased the expression of OsTMF and accumulation of OsTMF in the nucleus, where OsTMF acts as a transcription activator and modulates the expression of genes involved in pectin degradation (OsBURP16), cellulose biosynthesis (OsCesA4 and OsCesA9), and cell wall structural maintenance (genes encoding proline-rich proteins and peroxidases). OsTMF directly activated the expression of OsBURP16, OsCesA4, and OsCesA9 through binding to the TATA cis-elements in their promoters. Under cold stress conditions, OsTMF negatively regulated pectin content and peroxidase activity and positively regulated cellulose content, causing corresponding alterations to cell wall properties, all of which collectively contribute to the negative effect of OsTMF on cold tolerance. Our findings unravel a previously unreported molecular mechanism of a conserved plant TMF protein in the regulation of cell wall changes under cold stress.

Analysis of Changes in Plant Cell Wall Composition and Structure During Cold Acclimation.

The cell wall has a crucial influence on the mechanical properties of plant cells. It therefore has a strong impact on the freezing behavior and very likely also the freezing tolerance of plants. However, not many studies have addressed the question how cell wall composition and structure impact plant freezing tolerance and cold acclimation. In this chapter, we describe a comprehensive workflow to extract total cell wall material from leaves of Arabidopsis thaliana and to separate this material into fractions enriched in crystalline cellulose, pectins, and hemicelluloses by sequential fractionation. We further describe methods for the analysis of chemical structure, monosaccharide composition, and cellulose and uronic acid contents in the total cell wall material and the fractions in response to cold acclimation. Structural properties of cell wall material are analyzed by attenuated total reflectance-Fourier-transform infrared spectrometry (ATR-FTIR) and monosaccharide composition by gas chromatography-mass spectrometry (GC-MS) after isolation of alditol acetate derivatives of the sugars.

Barley grain (1,3;1,4)-\u03b2-glucan content: effects of transcript and sequence variation in genes encoding the corresponding synthase and endohydrolase enzymes

The composition of plant cell walls is important in determining cereal end uses. Unlike other widely consumed cereal grains barley is comparatively rich in (1,3;1,4)-β-glucan, a source of dietary fibre. Previous work showed Cellulose synthase-like genes synthesise (1,3;1,4)-β-glucan in several tissues. HvCslF6 encodes a grain (1,3;1,4)-β-glucan synthase, whereas the function of HvCslF9 is unknown. Here, the relationship between mRNA levels of HvCslF6, HvCslF9, HvGlbI (1,3;1,4)-β-glucan endohydrolase, and (1,3;1,4)-β-glucan content was studied in developing grains of four barley cultivars. HvCslF6 was differentially expressed during mid (8–15 DPA) and late (38 DPA) grain development stages while HvCslF9 transcript was only clearly detected at 8–10 DPA. A peak of HvGlbI expression was detected at 15 DPA. Differences in transcript abundance across the three genes could partially explain variation in grain (1,3;1,4)-β-glucan content in these genotypes. Remarkably narrow sequence variation was found within the HvCslF6 promoter and coding sequence and does not explain variation in (1,3;1,4)-β-glucan content. Our data emphasise the genotype-dependent accumulation of (1,3;1,4)-β-glucan during barley grain development and a role for the balance between hydrolysis and synthesis in determining (1,3;1,4)-β-glucan content, and suggests that other regulatory sequences or proteins are likely to be involved in this trait in developing grain.

Relationship of wood cell wall ultrastructure to bacterial degradation of wood

ABSTRACT This review presents information on the relationship of ultrastructure and composition of wood cell walls, in order to understand how wood degrading bacteria utilise cell wall components for their nutrition. A brief outline of the structure and composition of plant cell walls and the degradation patterns associated with bacterial degradation of wood cell walls precedes the description of the relationship of cell wall micro- and ultrastructure to bacterial degradation of the cell wall. The main topics covered are cell wall structure and composition, patterns of cell wall degradation by erosion and tunnelling bacteria, and the relationship of cell wall ultrastructure and composition to wood degradation by erosion and tunnelling bacteria. Finally, pertinent information from select recent studies employing molecular approaches to identify bacteria which can degrade lignin and other wood cell wall components is presented, and prospects for future investigations on wood degrading bacteria are explored.

Unraveling the impact of Pto4CL1 regulation on the cell wall components and wood properties of perennial transgenic Populus tomentosa

Cell wall components and structure impact the physical and mechanical properties of plants, thereby affecting wood applications. Lignin is the most abundant biopolymer after cellulose in the wood cell wall and can be modified by certain lignin biosynthesis enzymes. 4-Coumarate: coenzyme A ligase(4CL) is an important lignin biosynthesis enzyme. To demonstrate the impact of the regulation of Pto4CL1 from poplar on wood properties, we analyzed the composition and anatomy of 5-year-old Pto4CL1-modified poplar cell walls, assessing the density, strength, volume shrinkage, and impact toughness of the transgenic trees. These results showed that the up-regulation of Pto4CL1 increased the lignin content to 46.65% from 33.11% in the control plants, while hydrophilic polysaccharides such as cellulose, hemi-cellulose, and pectin decreased. In contrast, the down-regulation of Pto4CL1 resulted in a reduction in lignin content to 27.39%, and the content of cellulose and hemi-cellulose showed compensatory variation. Raman spectroscopy showed that the change in lignin in the transgenic events was embodied in the deposition and concentration of lignin in the secondary cell wall. Moreover, the increased lignin content caused significantly increased wood strength and slightly increased wood density. In contrast, a reduction in lignin content resulted in a significant decrease in wood strength and a slight decrease in wood density. However, the Pto4CL1-modified trees had similar stiffness to the control group. We also found a significant decrease in volume shrinkage and increase in impact toughness in the low-lignin events. These results indicate that Pto4CL1 regulation alters the chemical composition of plant cell walls and these changes affect the physical and mechanical properties of the wood.

Plant Cell Wall Composition: Does Ploidy Matter?

Most of the carbon dioxide sequestered by plants during photosynthesis is converted into sugars and stored into polysaccharide-enriched cells walls that constitute the majority of the plant biomass. While plants have long been considered a valuable resource of biomaterials for the chemical and

Effect of mcl-PHA synthesis in flax on plant mechanical properties and cell wall composition

The high demand for new biomaterials makes synthesis of polyhydroxyalkanoates (PHA) in plants an interesting and desirable achievement. Production of polymers in plants is an example of application of biotechnology for improving the properties of plants, e.g. industrial properties, but it can also provide knowledge about plant physiology and metabolism. The subject of the present study was an industrially important plant: flax, Linum usitatissimum L., of a fibre cultivar (cv Nike). In the study the gene encoding PHA synthase from Pseudomonas aeruginosa, fused to a peroxisomal targeting signal, was expressed in flax plants with the aim of modifying the mechanical properties of plants. Medium-chain-length (mcl) hydroxy acids in flax plants from tissue cultures were detected by GC-FID and FTIR method. The introduced changes did not affect fatty acid content and composition in generated flax plants. Since mcl-PHA are known as elastomers, the mechanical properties of created plants were examined. Modified plants showed increases in the values of all measured parameters (except strain at break evaluated for one modified line). The largest increase was noted for tensile stiffness, which was 2- to 3-fold higher than in wild-type plants. The values estimated for another parameter, Young’s modulus, was almost at the same level in generated flax plants, and they were about 2.7-fold higher when compared to unmodified plants. The created plants also exhibited up to about 2.4-fold higher tensile strength. The observed changes were accompanied by alterations in the expression of selected genes, related to cell wall metabolism in line with the highest expression of phaC1 gene. Biochemical data were confirmed by spectroscopic methods, which also revealed that crystallinity index values of cellulose in modified flax plants were increased in comparison to wild-type flax plants and correlated with biomechanical properties of plants.

Influence of fungal infection on plant tissues: FTIR detects compositional changes to plant cell walls

Compositional change in plant cell walls as a result of infection by non-host (putative) endophytes and a host pathogen were studied by quantifying plant cell wall degrading enzymes (CWDEs) produced by these fungi, and by detecting cell wall changes via Fourier Transform Infrared spectroscopy (FTIR) and relative lignin/carbohydrate intensity ratios. Oil palm ramets were first inoculated with homogenized fungal suspension. The treated fungal suspensions were assayed for CWDEs whereas the ramets were powderized for FTIR analysis. Results revealed that putative endophytes and host pathogen expressed all CWDEs, suggesting their probable roles in infection and colonization. Following inoculation, plant cell wall composition showed missing dips in spectra depicting changes to carbohydrate, xylan and lignin constituents. The indistinguishable FTIR spectra for putative endophyte-inoculated and pathogen-inoculated ramets suggest that both endophytes and pathogen have elicited similar responses to plant cell walls. Relative lignin/carbohydrate ratios further demonstrated that the putative endophytes did not breakdown lignin and carbohydrate, further exemplifying the non-pathogenic and asymptomatic infection by the endophytes. This study presents the influence of putative endophytes on plant tissues of oil palm, and how this compared to pathogenic infection.

Floating aquatic plants for total nitrogen and phosphorus removal from treated swine wastewater and their biomass characteristics

In this study, the removal of nitrogen and phosphorus from the effluent of treated swine wastewater by Eichhornia crassipes, Pistia stratiotes, Limnobium laevigatum, and Lemna sp. was investigated. This study also aimed to quantify the potential biomass production and lignocellulosic composition of the floating plants cultured in the effluent. Plants were grown in treated swine wastewater effluent or Hoagland's solution. Pistia stratiotes showed the highest total nitrogen removal of 63.15% from the treated effluent. Lemna sp. showed the highest phosphorus removal of 36.15% from the treated effluent. However, Lemna sp. could not be further utilized because the plants could only be cultured for 13 days. The effluent likely had properties that inhibited the growth and nutrient uptake by the plants; further studies would be required to verify these properties. Pistia stratiotes and Eichhornia crassipes have higher tolerance than Lemna sp. to grow in treated swine wastewater. Eichhornia crassipes produced the highest biomass of 5.19 g dry weight/m2/day. Cellulose and lignin contents were higher in the Hoagland's solution treatment when compared with the effluent. However, based on an independent T-test analysis, the cellulose contents of plants grown in different media were not significantly different. Hemicellulose content was significantly different for Pistia stratiotes (p < 0.05). Finally, lignin content was significantly different for Eichhornia crassipes and Lemna sp (p < 0.05). The nutrient composition and available plant nutrients as well as other substances present in the effluent might have influenced the plant cell wall composition.

The impact of silicon on cell wall composition and enzymatic saccharification of Brachypodium distachyon

BackgroundPlants and in particular grasses benefit from a high uptake of silicon (Si) which improves their growth and productivity by alleviating adverse effects of biotic and abiotic stress. However, the silicon present in plant tissues may have a negative impact on the processing and degradation of lignocellulosic biomass. Solutions to reduce the silicon content either by biomass engineering or development of downstream separation methods are therefore targeted. Different cell wall components have been proposed to interact with the silica pool in plant shoots, but the understanding of the underlying processes is still limited.ResultsIn the present study, we have characterized silicon deposition and cell wall composition in Brachypodium distachyon wild-type and low-silicon 1 (Bdlsi1-1) mutant plants. Our analyses included different organs and plant developmental stages. In the mutant defective in silicon uptake, low silicon availability favoured deposition of this element in the amorphous form or bound to cell wall polymers rather than as silicified structures. Several alterations in non-cellulosic polysaccharides and lignin were recorded in the mutant plants, indicating differences in the types of linkages and in the three-dimensional organization of the cell wall network. Enzymatic saccharification assays showed that straw from mutant plants was marginally more degradable following a 190 °C hydrothermal pretreatment, while there were no differences without or after a 120 °C hydrothermal pretreatment.ConclusionsWe conclude that silicon affects the composition of plant cell walls, mostly by altering linkages of non-cellulosic polymers and lignin. The modifications of the cell wall network and the reduced silicon concentration appear to have little or no implications on biomass recalcitrance to enzymatic saccharification.

A Transcriptomic Analysis of Xylan Mutants Does Not Support the Existence of a Secondary Cell Wall Integrity System in Arabidopsis.

Yeast have long been known to possess a cell wall integrity (CWI) system, and recently an analogous system has been described for the primary walls of plants (PCWI) that leads to changes in plant growth and cell wall composition. A similar system has been proposed to exist for secondary cell walls (SCWI). However, there is little data to support this. Here, we analyzed the stem transcriptome of a set of cell wall biosynthetic mutants in order to investigate whether cell wall damage, in this case caused by aberrant xylan synthesis, activates a signaling cascade or changes in cell wall synthesis gene expression. Our data revealed remarkably few changes to the transcriptome. We hypothesize that this is because cells undergoing secondary cell wall thickening have entered a committed programme leading to cell death, and therefore a SCWI system would have limited impact. The absence of transcriptomic responses to secondary cell wall alterations may facilitate engineering of the secondary cell wall of plants.

Plant cell wall composition and enzymatic deconstruction

Cellulosic ethanol is one the most prominent technologies capable of replacing the use of fossil fuels in an observable horizon of technological development. The complexity of plant biomass, however, continues to challenge our ability to convert it into biofuels efficiently. Highly complex and cross-linked polysaccharides, hydrophobic and protein adsorbent polymers, and crystalline supramolecular structures comprise some of the structures that shield the plant cell contents (and the shield structures themselves) against predators. In response, a sophisticated enzymatic weaponry, with its associated chemical and physical mechanisms, is necessary to overcome this recalcitrance. Here we describe basic information about chemical composition of lignocellulosic biomass and the enzymatic arsenal for lignocellulose deconstruction into fermentable sugars.

Different Routes for Conifer- and Sinapaldehyde and Higher Saccharification upon Deficiency in the Dehydrogenase CAD1.

In the search for renewable energy sources, genetic engineering is a promising strategy to improve plant cell wall composition for biofuel and bioproducts generation. Lignin is a major factor determining saccharification efficiency and, therefore, is a prime target to engineer. Here, lignin content and composition were modified in poplar (Populus tremula × Populus alba) by specifically down-regulating CINNAMYL ALCOHOL DEHYDROGENASE1 (CAD1) by a hairpin-RNA-mediated silencing approach, which resulted in only 5% residual CAD1 transcript abundance. These transgenic lines showed no biomass penalty despite a 10% reduction in Klason lignin content and severe shifts in lignin composition. Nuclear magnetic resonance spectroscopy and thioacidolysis revealed a strong increase (up to 20-fold) in sinapaldehyde incorporation into lignin, whereas coniferaldehyde was not increased markedly. Accordingly, ultra-high-performance liquid chromatography-mass spectrometry-based phenolic profiling revealed a more than 24,000-fold accumulation of a newly identified compound made from 8-8 coupling of two sinapaldehyde radicals. However, no additional cinnamaldehyde coupling products could be detected in the CAD1-deficient poplars. Instead, the transgenic lines accumulated a range of hydroxycinnamate-derived metabolites, of which the most prominent accumulation (over 8,500-fold) was observed for a compound that was identified by purification and nuclear magnetic resonance as syringyl lactic acid hexoside. Our data suggest that, upon down-regulation of CAD1, coniferaldehyde is converted into ferulic acid and derivatives, whereas sinapaldehyde is either oxidatively coupled into S'(8-8)S' and lignin or converted to sinapic acid and derivatives. The most prominent sink of the increased flux to hydroxycinnamates is syringyl lactic acid hexoside. Furthermore, low-extent saccharification assays, under different pretreatment conditions, showed strongly increased glucose (up to +81%) and xylose (up to +153%) release, suggesting that down-regulating CAD1 is a promising strategy for improving lignocellulosic biomass for the sugar platform industry.

Towards an Understanding of Enhanced Biomass Digestibility by In Planta Expression of a Family 5 Glycoside Hydrolase

In planta expression of a thermophilic endoglucanase (AcCel5A) reduces recalcitrance by creating voids and other irregularities in cell walls of Arabidopsis thaliana that increase enzyme accessibility without negative impacts on plant growth or cell wall composition. Our results suggest that cellulose β-1–4 linkages can be cut sparingly in the assembling wall and that these minimal changes, made at the proper time, have an impact on plant cell wall recalcitrance without negative effects on overall plant development.

Carbohydrate microarrays and their use for the identification of molecular markers for plant cell wall composition

Genetic improvement of the plant cell wall has enormous potential to increase the quality of food, fibers, and fuels. However, the identification and characterization of genes involved in plant cell wall synthesis is far from complete. Association mapping is one of the few techniques that can help identify candidate genes without relying on our currently incomplete knowledge of cell wall synthesis. However, few cell wall phenotyping methodologies have proven sufficiently precise, robust, or scalable for association mapping to be conducted for specific cell wall polymers. Here, we created high-density carbohydrate microarrays containing chemically extracted cell wall polysaccharides collected from 331 genetically diverse Brassica napus cultivars and used them to obtain detailed, quantitative information describing the relative abundance of selected noncellulosic polysaccharide linkages and primary structures. We undertook genome-wide association analysis of data collected from 57 carbohydrate microarrays and identified molecular markers reflecting a diversity of specific xylan, xyloglucan, pectin, and arabinogalactan moieties. These datasets provide a detailed insight into the natural variations in cell wall carbohydrate moieties between B. napus genotypes and identify associated markers that could be exploited by marker-assisted breeding. The identified markers also have value beyond B. napus for functional genomics, facilitated by the close genetic relatedness to the model plant Arabidopsis Together, our findings provide a unique dissection of the genetic architecture that underpins plant cell wall biosynthesis and restructuring.

Stomatal cell wall composition: distinctive structural patterns associated with different phylogenetic groups.

Background and Aims Stomatal morphology and function have remained largely conserved throughout ∼400 million years of plant evolution. However, plant cell wall composition has evolved and changed. Here stomatal cell wall composition was investigated in different vascular plant groups in attempt to understand their possible effect on stomatal function. Methods A renewed look at stomatal cell walls was attempted utilizing digitalized polar microscopy, confocal microscopy, histology and a numerical finite-elements simulation. The six species of vascular plants chosen for this study cover a broad structural, ecophysiological and evolutionary spectrum: ferns (Asplenium nidus and Platycerium bifurcatum) and angiosperms (Arabidopsis thaliana and Commelina erecta) with kidney-shaped stomata, and grasses (angiosperms, family Poaceae) with dumbbell-shaped stomata (Sorghum bicolor and Triticum aestivum). Key Results Three distinct patterns of cellulose crystallinity in stomatal cell walls were observed: Type I (kidney-shaped stomata, ferns), Type II (kidney-shaped stomata, angiosperms) and Type III (dumbbell-shaped stomata, grasses). The different stomatal cell wall attributes investigated (cellulose crystallinity, pectins, lignin, phenolics) exhibited taxon-specific patterns, with reciprocal substitution of structural elements in the end-walls of kidney-shaped stomata. According to a numerical bio-mechanical model, the end walls of kidney-shaped stomata develop the highest stresses during opening. Conclusions The data presented demonstrate for the first time the existence of distinct spatial patterns of varying cellulose crystallinity in guard cell walls. It is also highly intriguing that in angiosperms crystalline cellulose appears to have replaced lignin that occurs in the stomatal end-walls of ferns serving a similar wall strengthening function. Such taxon-specific spatial patterns of cell wall components could imply different biomechanical functions, which in turn could be a consequence of differences in environmental selection along the course of plant evolution.

Cell wall biochemical alterations during Agrobacterium-mediated expression of haemagglutinin-based influenza virus-like vaccine particles in tobacco.

SummaryInfluenza virus‐like particles (VLPs) have been shown to induce a safe and potent immune response through both humoral and cellular responses. They represent promising novel influenza vaccines. Plant‐based biotechnology allows for the large‐scale production of VLPs of biopharmaceutical interest using different model organisms, including Nicotiana benthamiana plants. Through this platform, influenza VLPs bud from the plasma membrane and accumulate between the membrane and the plant cell wall. To design and optimize efficient production processes, a better understanding of the plant cell wall composition of infiltrated tobacco leaves is a major interest for the plant biotechnology industry. In this study, we have investigated the alteration of the biochemical composition of the cell walls of N. benthamiana leaves subjected to abiotic and biotic stresses induced by the Agrobacterium‐mediated transient transformation and the resulting high expression levels of influenza VLPs. Results show that abiotic stress due to vacuum infiltration without Agrobacterium did not induce any detectable modification of the leaf cell wall when compared to non infiltrated leaves. In contrast, various chemical changes of the leaf cell wall were observed post‐Agrobacterium infiltration. Indeed, Agrobacterium infection induced deposition of callose and lignin, modified the pectin methylesterification and increased both arabinosylation of RG‐I side chains and the expression of arabinogalactan proteins. Moreover, these modifications were slightly greater in plants expressing haemagglutinin‐based VLP than in plants infiltrated with the Agrobacterium strain containing only the p19 suppressor of silencing.

Feedstock selection for polymer and chemical production: feedstock-specific recalcitrance.

Plant cell wall materials derived from a range of waste biomass sources have great potential as a source of sustainable alternatives to petrochemicals. Perhaps the most straightforward way of realising this potential would be to hydrolyse the most efficiently fermentable polymers into their constituent sugars and use yeast to ferment these into useful chemicals. However, it also makes sense to pre-extract components which have a greater value in polymeric form. This is particularly true for non-cellulosic polymers, which are rich in poorly-fermentable pentose sugars. Liquid hot water (LHW) pretreatment can be used to extract non-cellulosic carbohydrates in a cost-effective manner, leaving a cellulose-rich substrate which is easier to hydrolyse using commercial cellulases. However, inherent differences in the plant cell wall structure and composition mean that some biomass sources may be more suitable for exploitation than others. Here, we examine eight different feedstocks (two each from hardwood, softwood, cereal straws and dicotyledonous crops), expose them to 26 different LHW pretreatment conditions and hydrolyse the entire pretreated slurry with a commercial cellulase. This enables side-by-side comparisons, in terms of saccharification yield, of the feedstocks. The results clearly demonstrate considerable differences in suitability between the feedstocks, in relation to the quantity of products released and the processes needed to obtain them.

Pathogen-induced conditioning of the primary xylem vessels - a prerequisite for the formation of bacterial emboli by Pectobacterium atrosepticum.

Representatives of Pectobacterium genus are some of the most harmful phytopathogens in the world. In the present study, we have elucidated novel aspects of plant-Pectobacterium atrosepticum interactions. This bacterium was recently demonstrated to form specific 'multicellular' structures - bacterial emboli in the xylem vessels of infected plants. In our work, we showed that the process of formation of these structures includes the pathogen-induced reactions of the plant. The colonisation of the plant by P.atrosepticum is coupled with the release of a pectic polysaccharide, rhamnogalacturonan I, into the vessel lumen from the plant cell wall. This polysaccharide gives rise to a gel that serves as a matrix for bacterial emboli. P.atrosepticum-caused infection involves an increase of reactive oxygen species (ROS) levels in the vessels, creating the conditions for the scission of polysaccharides and modification of plant cell wall composition. Both the release of rhamnogalacturonan I and the increase in ROS precede colonisation of the vessels by bacteria and occur only in the primary xylem vessels, the same as the subsequent formation of bacterial emboli. Since the appearance of rhamnogalacturonan I and increase in ROS levels do not hamper the bacterial cells and form a basis for the assembly of bacterial emboli, these reactions may be regarded as part of the susceptible response of the plant. Bacterial emboli thus represent the products of host-pathogen integration, since the formation of these structures requires the action of both partners.

Overexpression of SbMyb60 impacts phenylpropanoid biosynthesis and alters secondary cell wall composition in Sorghum bicolor.

The phenylpropanoid biosynthetic pathway that generates lignin subunits represents a significant target for altering the abundance and composition of lignin. The global regulators of phenylpropanoid metabolism may include MYB transcription factors, whose expression levels have been correlated with changes in secondary cell wall composition and the levels of several other aromatic compounds, including anthocyanins and flavonoids. While transcription factors correlated with downregulation of the phenylpropanoid biosynthesis pathway have been identified in several grass species, few transcription factors linked to activation of this pathway have been identified in C4 grasses, some of which are being developed as dedicated bioenergy feedstocks. In this study we investigated the role of SbMyb60 in lignin biosynthesis in sorghum (Sorghum bicolor), which is a drought-tolerant, high-yielding biomass crop. Ectopic expression of this transcription factor in sorghum was associated with higher expression levels of genes involved in monolignol biosynthesis, and led to higher abundances of syringyl lignin, significant compositional changes to the lignin polymer and increased lignin concentration in biomass. Moreover, transgenic plants constitutively overexpressing SbMyb60 also displayed ectopic lignification in leaf midribs and elevated concentrations of soluble phenolic compounds in biomass. Results indicate that overexpression of SbMyb60 is associated with activation of monolignol biosynthesis in sorghum. SbMyb60 represents a target for modification of plant cell wall composition, with the potential to improve biomass for renewable uses.