X-ray Microbeam and Electron Diffraction Experiments on Developing

Biomacromolecules 2002, 3, 182-186

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X-ray Microbeam and Electron Diffraction Experiments on Developing Xylem Cell Walls Martin Mu¨ller,†,§ Ritsuko Hori,‡ Takao Itoh,‡ and Junji Sugiyama*,‡ European Synchrotron Radiation Facility, B.P. 220, F-38043, Grenoble Cedex, France; and Wood Research Institute, Kyoto University, Uji, Kyoto 611-0011, Japan Received September 1, 2001; Revised Manuscript Received October 24, 2001

This paper describes the first successful application of the novel technique of X-ray microbeam diffraction to the study of wood cell walls in developing xylem tissue. The method enabled us to obtain quantitative diffraction diagrams from single cell walls. It was further combined with selected area electron diffraction. We find that the crystal size of cellulose is increasing from the primary wall (P,