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Science 21 November 1980:
Vol. 210. no. 4472, pp. 903 - 906
DOI: 10.1126/science.7434003
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Articles

Science, Vol 210, Issue 4472, 903-906
Copyright © 1980 by American Association for the Advancement of Science

articles

Calcofluor white ST Alters the in vivo assembly of cellulose microfibrils

CH Haigler, RM Brown Jr, and M Benziman

The fluorescent brightener, Calcofluor White ST, prevents the in vivo assembly of crystalline cellulose microfibrils and ribbons by Acetobacter xylinum. In the presence of more than 0.01 percent Calcofluor, Acetobacter continues to synthesize high-molecular-weight beta-1,4 glucans. X-ray crystallography shows that the altered product exhibits no detectable crystallinity in the wet state, but upon drying it changes into crystalline cellulose I. Calcofluor alters cellulose crystallization by hydrogen bonding with glucan chains. Synthesis of this altered product is reversible and can be monitored with fluorescence and electron microscopy. Use of Calcofluor has made it possible to separate the processes of polymerization and crystallization leading to the biogenesis of cellulose microfibrils, and has suggested that crystallization occurs by a cell-directed. self-assembly process in Acetobacter xylinum.


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