InterPro domain: IPR016455

This entry includes a group of xyloglucan endotransglucosylase/hydrolases (XTHs) from plants [ 1 ]. Xyloglucan is a soluble hemicellulose with a backbone of beta-1,4-linked glucose units, partially substituted with alpha-1,6-linked xylopyranose branches. It binds noncovalently to cellulose, cross-linking the adjacent cellulose microfibrils, giving it a key structural role as a matrix polymer. XTHs catalyses xyloglucan endohydrolysis (XEH) and/or endotransglycosylation (XET) and are involved in the modification of cell wall structure by cleaving and, often, also re-joining xyloglucan molecules in primary plant cell walls [ 2 ].

1. The XTH gene family: an update on enzyme structure, function, and phylogeny in xyloglucan remodeling. Plant Physiol. 153, 456-66
2. Active gene expression of a xyloglucan endotransglucosylase/hydrolase gene, XTH9, in inflorescence apices is related to cell elongation in Arabidopsis thaliana. Plant Mol. Biol. 52, 473-82