'Glue' that makes plant cell walls strong could hold the key to wooden skyscrapers
Wednesday, December 21, 2016 - 05:02
in Biology & Nature
Molecules 10,000 times narrower than the width of a human hair could hold the key to making possible wooden skyscrapers and more energy-efficient paper production, according to research published today in the journal Nature Communications. The study, led by a father and son team at the Universities of Warwick and Cambridge, solves a long-standing mystery of how key sugars in cells bind to form strong, indigestible materials.