Effects of 2,6-dichlorobenzonitrile and Tinopal LPW on the structure of the cellulose synthesizing complexes ofVaucheria hamata

Summary The effects of 2,6-dichlorobenzonitrile (DCB, a known inhibitor of cellulose synthesis) and Tinopal LPW (TPL, an agent which disrupts glucan crystallization) on the structure of cellulose synthesizing complexes (terminal complexes, TCs) in the xanthophycean algaVaucheria hamata were investigated. DCB (10 M) inhibits nascent fibril formation from the TC subunit (based on the absence of impressions) although it does not alter the overall shape of the rectangular TC during the short treatment of 20 min. With a prolonged treatment (60 min), the arrangement of TC subunits becomes disordered, and particles generally exhibited as doublets of subunits are released from each other. DCB also interferes with the formation of the overall shape of the TC although it does not disturb the conversion into TC rows of the subunits (the zymogenic precursor of the TC) packed in the globules. A 15 min treatment with TPL (1 mM) destroys the TC integrity by reducing the subunits into small fragments or particulate aggregates. The particulate rows of the TC are interrupted at many points, and fragments and particulate aggregates are dispersed by prolonged treatment (45 min) with TPL. Unlike DCB, TPL inhibits the conversion of globule subunits into TC rows. New insights on the structural characteristics necessary for cellulose microfibril assembly and possible mechanisms for the biogenesis of theVaucheria TC come from these data.Abbreviations DCB 2,6-dichlorobenzonitrile - TPL Tinopal LPW - TC terminal complex