Monoclonal Antibodies, Carbohydrate-Binding Modules, and Detection of Polysaccharides in Cell Walls from Plants and Marine Algae

Plant and algal cell walls are diverse composites of complex polysaccharides. Molecular probes such as monoclonal antibodies (MABs) and carbohydrate-binding modules (CBMs) are important tools to detect and dissect cell wall structures in these materials. We provide an account of methods that can be used to detect cell wall polysaccharide structures (epitopes) in plant and marine algal materials and also describe treatments that can provide information on the masking of polysaccharides that may prevent detection. These masking phenomena may indicate potential interactions between sets of cell wall polysaccharides and methods to uncover them are an important aspect of cell wall immunocytochemistry.