Different Distribution of Cellulose Synthesizing Complexes in Brittle and Non-Brittle Strains of Barley

The cause of low cellulose content in brittle mutants of barley was studied. No differences were found in the dimension of crystalline cellulose microfibrils among mutant and normal strains by X-ray diffraction analysis. By contrast, the number of cellulose synthesizing terminal complexes (TCs) in a selected brittle mutant, Kobinkatagi 4, decreased to one fifth of that in the normal strain. These findings suggest that the low cellulose content in brittle mutants of barley is caused by the decrease in the number of TCs on its plasma membrane.