A critical assessment of the role of oligosaccharides in intracellular class stability

The role of oligosaccharides in enhancing the stability of intracellular glasses was investigated. Priming Pisum sativum seeds for 6 days in a polyethylene glycol solution of -1.0 MPa at 20 degrees C resulted in a change in the sugar composition. In pea axes, total oligosaccharide content decreased from 168 to 27 mg g(-1) dry weight (DW), while sucrose content increased from 41 to 62 mg g(-1) DW. Despite the change in oligosaccharide:sucrose ratio, no difference in the glass transition temperature was measured in dry pea axes before and after priming as determined by DSC. Saturation transfer electron spin resonance spectroscopy was used to measure the rotational mobility of a polar spin probe, 3-carboxy-proxyl, which was inserted into the cytoplasm of axes. No difference was found between the rotational mobility in dry untreated axes and that of dry primed axes. There is no significant contribution of oligosaccharides to intracellular glass stability in terms of increasing the glass transition temperature or decreasing the mobility of molecules in the intracellular glass.