Advances in Pectin and Pectinase Research

I. Pectin (Bio)Synthesis.- Interaction of a stylar pectic polysaccharide and a basic protein (sca) mediates lily pollen tube adhesion.- Towards unraveling the biological significance of the individual components of pectic hairy regions in plants.- Detergent-solubilisation of a homogalacturonan galacturonosyltransferase from mung bean.- Pectin - the hairy thing: evidence that homogalacturonan is a side chain of rhamnogalacturonan I.- II. Structure, Physical and Chemical Properties of Pectin.- Covalent cross-linking of primary cell wall pectic polysaccharides is required for normal plant growth.- Differences in the methyl ester distribution of pectins.- Physico-chemical properties of pectins in the cell walls and after extraction.- A comparison of lime and orange pectin which were rapidly extracted from albedo.- The hydration behaviour of pectin networks and plant cell walls.- Structural features of pectic substances from hemicellulose extracts of apples.- Pectin cell biology: complexity in context.- Pectic substances from soybean cell walls distinguish themselves from other plant cell wall pectins.- III. Molecular Genetics and Regulation of Pectinase Biosynthesis.- Regulation of pectinolytic gene expression in Aspergillus.- Transgenesis with an antisense construct and a promoter-reporter fusion for the study of lupme3, a flax pectin methylesterase gene.- Regulation and role of pectinases in phytopathogenic fungi.- Synthesis of pectin fragments by modular design principle.- IV. Identification, Mode of Action, and 3-D Structure of Pectinases.- Mechanistic lessons from structural studies of the pectate lyases.- Mode of action analysis and structure - function Relationships in Aspergillus niger pectinolytic enzymes.- Endo-xylogalacturonan hydrolase, a novel enzyme for fruit processing.- The structures and active sites of pectinases.- Recent observations on the specificity and structural conformation of the polygalacturonase - polygalacturonase inhibiting protein system.- Structure-function and molecular studies on fungal polygalacturonases and their inhibitors PGIPs.- Rhamnogalacturonan acetylesterase, a member of the SGNH-Hydrolase family.- Sequence analysis and characterisation of a novel pectin acetyl esterase from Bacillus subtilis.- The tow secreted pectin acetylesterases of Erwinia chrysanthemi 3937, PAEY and PAEX.- Development of a valencia orange pectin methylesterase for generating novel pectin products.- Structure-function of a proteinaceous inhibitor of plant pectin methylesterase.- Degradation of pectins with different nature, amount and distribution of the substituents by endopolygalacturonase of fusarium moniliforme.- V. Pectinases in Beverage, Food and Feed, and Novel Technologies.- The role of pectins in plant tissue upon storage and processing: analysis and mathematical modelling in relation to firmness.- Kinetic information on thermal and high pressure-temperature inactivation of pectinesterases.- VI. Developments in Pectin Manufacture and Application.- Characterisation of pectins extracted from fresh sugar beet roots under different conditions using an experimental design.- Sol-gel transitions of high-esterified pectins and their molecular structure.- Rheological characterization of gum and jelly products.- Comparison of the stabilisation mechanism of acid dairy drinks (ADD) induced by pectin and soluble soybean polysaccharide (SSP).- Recent studies on possible functions of bioactive pectins and pectic polysaccharides from medicinal herbs on health care.- Effect of pectolytic and cellulolytic enzyme treatments on functional and nutritional properties of cell wall materials from apples.