Investigation of the enzymatic digestion of plant cell walls using reflectance Fourier Transform Infrared spectroscopy.

A method has been developed to determine the reflectance Fourier Transform Infrared spectra of plant cells grown in vitro and of the protoplasts released from such cells by enzymatic digestion. It is demonstrated that there is a smooth and reproducible transition in spectral detail as enzymatic digestion procedes. Reflectance Fourier Transform Infrared spectroscopy has been used to monitor the progress of protoplast release during enzymatic digestion of cell wall material.