The Role of Cellulase in Hyalocyst Pore Formation in the Moss Syrrhopodon texanus

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Abstract
The sheathing leaf bases of Syrrhopodon texanus are primarily composed of porose, thin-walled cells called hyalocysts. Large pores develop in several of the hyalocyst walls through the gradual removal of wall material. A cellulase with a pH optimum of 4.5 was detected in extracts of Syrrhopodon gametophores by viscometric assays and dinitrosalicylic acid assay for reducing sugars. Cytochemical localization of cellulase activity in association with thinning hyalocyst cell walls implicate this enzyme in pore formation and is the first direct evidence of cellulase activity in a member of the Bryophyta.