A WDR Gene Is a Conserved Member of a Chitin Synthase Gene Cluster and Influences the Cell Wall in Aspergillus nidulans.

WD40 repeat (WDR) proteins are pleiotropic molecular hubs. We identify a WDR gene that is a conserved genomic neighbor of a chitin synthase gene in Ascomycetes. The WDR gene is unique to fungi and plants, and was called Fungal Plant WD (FPWD). FPWD is within a cell wall metabolism gene cluster in the Ascomycetes (Pezizomycotina) comprising chsD, a Chs activator and a GH17 glucanase. The FPWD, AN1556.2 locus was deleted in Aspergillus nidulans strain SAA.111 by gene replacement and only heterokaryon transformants were obtained. The re-annotation of Aspergilli genomes shows that AN1556.2 consists of two tightly linked separate genes, i.e., the WDR gene and a putative beta-flanking gene of unknown function. The WDR and the beta-flanking genes are conserved genomic neighbors localized within a recently identified metabolic cell wall gene cluster in genomes of Aspergilli. The heterokaryons displayed increased susceptibility to drugs affecting the cell wall, and their phenotypes, observed by optical, confocal, scanning electron and atomic force microscopy, suggest cell wall alterations. Quantitative real-time PCR shows altered expression of some cell wall-related genes. The possible implications on cell wall biosynthesis are discussed.

Biocatalyzed approach for the surface functionalization of poly(L-lactic acid) films using hydrolytic enzymes.

Poly(lactic acid) as a biodegradable thermoplastic polyester has received increasing attention. This renewable polyester has found applications in a wide range of products such as food packaging, textiles and biomedical devices. Its major drawbacks are poor toughness, slow degradation rate and lack of reactive side-chain groups. An enzymatic process for the grafting of carboxylic acids onto the surface of poly(L-lactic acid) (PLLA) films was developed using Candida antarctica lipase B as a catalyst. Enzymatic hydrolysis of the PLLA film using Humicola insolens cutinase in order to increase the number of hydroxyl and carboxylic groups on the outer polymer chains for grafting was also assessed and showed a change of water contact angle from 74.6 to 33.1° while the roughness and waviness were an order of magnitude higher in comparison to the blank. Surface functionalization was demonstrated using two different techniques, (14) C-radiochemical analysis and X-ray photoelectron spectroscopy (XPS) using (14) C-butyric acid sodium salt and 4,4,4-trifluorobutyric acid as model molecules, respectively. XPS analysis showed that 4,4,4-trifluorobutyric acid was enzymatically coupled based on an increase of the fluor content from 0.19 to 0.40%. The presented (14) C-radiochemical analyses are consistent with the XPS data indicating the potential of enzymatic functionalization in different reaction conditions.

Compatibility between cellulose and hydrophobic polymer provided by microfibrillated lignocellulose.

Microfibrillated lignocellulose (MFLC) was produced from wood subjected to partial lignin extraction using an ethanol/water mixture. After homogenization, the average fibril diameter of MFLC was in the same range as conventional microfibrillated cellulose (MFC). Although MFLC exhibited higher wettability with water compared to MFC, AFM adhesion force measurements revealed high variability in surface polarity of MFLC compared to MFC. Specifically, domains of higher polarity than in MFC but also domains of lower polarity than in MFC were observed in MFLC. This tendency towards amphiphilic behavior of MFLC was used to provide enhanced compatibility with polycaprolactone and polystyrene matrices. With both polymers, a significantly more homogeneous distribution of fibrils was achieved using MFLC compared to MFC. In line with better dispersion of the fibrils, significantly more efficient mechanical reinforcement of polymers was obtained using MFLC compared to MFC.

Sensitivity of Aspergillus nidulans to the cellulose synthase inhibitor dichlobenil: insights from wall-related genes' expression and ultrastructural hyphal morphologies.

The fungal cell wall constitutes an important target for the development of antifungal drugs, because of its central role in morphogenesis, development and determination of fungal-specific molecular features. Fungal walls are characterized by a network of interconnected glycoproteins and polysaccharides, namely α-, ß-glucans and chitin. Cell walls promptly and dynamically respond to environmental stimuli by a signaling mechanism, which triggers, among other responses, modulations in wall biosynthetic genes' expression. Despite the absence of cellulose in the wall of the model filamentous fungus Aspergillus nidulans, we found in this study that fungal growth, spore germination and morphology are affected by the addition of the cellulose synthase inhibitor dichlobenil. Expression analysis of selected genes putatively involved in cell wall biosynthesis, carried out at different time points of drug exposure (i.e. 0, 1, 3, 6 and 24 h), revealed increased expression for the putative mixed linkage ß-1,3;1,4 glucan synthase celA together with the ß-1,3-glucan synthase fksA and the Rho-related GTPase rhoA. We also compared these data with the response to Congo Red, a known plant/fungal drug affecting both chitin and cellulose biosynthesis. The two drugs exerted different effects at the cell wall level, as shown by gene expression analysis and the ultrastructural features observed through atomic force microscopy and scanning electron microscopy. Although the concentration of dichlobenil required to affect growth of A. nidulans is approximately 10-fold higher than that required to inhibit plant cellulose biosynthesis, our work for the first time demonstrates that a cellulose biosynthesis inhibitor affects fungal growth, changes fungal morphology and expression of genes connected to fungal cell wall biosynthesis.

Evaluating fundamental position-dependent differences in wood cell wall adhesion using nanoindentation.

Spruce wood specimens were bonded with one-component polyurethane (PUR) and urea-formaldehyde (UF) adhesive, respectively. The adhesion of the adhesives to the wood cell wall was evaluated at two different locations by means of a new micromechanical assay based on nanoindentation. One location tested corresponded to the interface between the adhesive and the natural inner cell wall surface of the secondary cell wall layer 3 (S3), whereas the second location corresponded to the interface between the adhesive and the freshly cut secondary cell wall layer 2 (S2). Overall, a trend towards reduced cell wall adhesion was found for PUR compared to UF. Position-resolved examination revealed excellent adhesion of UF to freshly cut cell walls (S2) but significantly diminished adhesion to the inner cell wall surface (S3). In contrast, PUR showed better adhesion to the inner cell wall surface and less adhesion to freshly cut cell walls. Atomic force microscopy revealed a less polar character for the inner cell wall surface (S3) compared to freshly cut cell walls (S2). It is proposed that differences in the polarity of the used adhesives and the surface chemistry of the two cell wall surfaces examined account for the observed trends.

Cellulose nanofibrils as filler for adhesives: effect on specific fracture energy of solid wood-adhesive bonds.

Cellulose nanofibrils were prepared by mechanical fibrillation of never-dried beech pulp and bacterial cellulose. To facilitate the separation of individual fibrils, one part of the wood pulp was surface-carboxylated by a catalytic oxidation using (2,2,6,6-tetramethylpiperidin-1-yl)oxyl (TEMPO) as a catalyst. After fibrillation by a high pressure homogenizer, the obtained aqueous fibril dispersions were directly mixed with different urea-formaldehyde-(UF)-adhesives. To investigate the effect of added cellulose filler on the fracture mechanical properties of wood adhesive bonds, double cantilever beam specimens were prepared from spruce wood. While the highest fracture energy values were observed for UF-bonds filled with untreated nanofibrils prepared from wood pulp, bonds filled with TEMPO-oxidized fibrils showed less satisfying performance. It is proposed that UF-adhesive bonds can be significantly toughened by the addition of only small amounts of cellulose nanofibrils. Thereby, the optimum filler content is largely depending on the adhesive and type of cellulose filler used.