Supramolecular Self-Assembled Chaos: Polyphenolic Lignin’s Barrier to Cost-Effective Lignocellulosic Biofuels

Molecules

Komandoor Elayavalli Achyuthan¹  Ann Mary Achyuthan¹  Paul David Adams¹  Shawn Matthew Dirk¹  Jason Carl Harper¹  Blake Alexander Simmons¹ 

[1] ¹Joint BioEnergy Institute (JBEI), Emeryville, CA 94550, USA

关键词: lignin;    supramolecular self-assembly;    cell wall;    deconstruction;    enzymes;    LCC;    fractal;    lignocellulosic biofuels;   

DOI  :  10.3390/molecules15118641

来源: mdpi

【 摘 要 】

Phenylpropanoid metabolism yields a mixture of monolignols that undergo chaotic, non-enzymatic reactions such as free radical polymerization and spontaneous self-assembly in order to form the polyphenolic lignin which is a barrier to cost-effective lignocellulosic biofuels. Post-synthesis lignin integration into the plant cell wall is unclear, including how the hydrophobic lignin incorporates into the wall in an initially hydrophilic milieu. Self-assembly, self-organization and aggregation give rise to a complex, 3D network of lignin that displays randomly branched topology and fractal properties. Attempts at isolating lignin, analogous to archaeology, are instantly destructive and non-representative of in planta. Lack of plant ligninases or enzymes that hydrolyze specific bonds in lignin-carbohydrate complexes (LCCs) also frustrate a better grasp of lignin. Supramolecular self-assembly, nano-mechanical properties of lignin-lignin, lignin-polysaccharide interactions and association-dissociation kinetics affect biomass deconstruction and thereby cost-effective biofuels production.

【 授权许可】

CC BY   
This is an open access article distributed under the Creative Commons Attribution License (CC BY) which permits unrestricted use, distribution, and reproduction in any medium, provided the original work is properly cited.