Boreal pollen contain ice-nucleating as well as ice-binding 'antifreeze' polysaccharides.

ABSTRACT: Ice nucleation and growth is an important and widespread environmental process. Accordingly, nature has developed means to either promote or inhibit ice crystal formation, for example ice-nucleating proteins in bacteria or ice-binding antifreeze proteins in polar fish. Recently, it was found that birch pollen release ice-nucleating macromolecules when suspended in water. Here we show that birch pollen washing water exhibits also ice-binding properties such as ice shaping and ice recrystallization inhibition, similar to antifreeze proteins. We present spectroscopic evidence that both the ice-nucleating as well as the ice-binding molecules are polysaccharides bearing carboxylate groups. The spectra suggest that both polysaccharides consist of very similar chemical moieties, but centrifugal f

SUBMITTER: Dreischmeier K 

PROVIDER: S-EPMC5291224 | biostudies-literature | 2017 Feb

REPOSITORIES: biostudies-literature