Mass spectrometric study of glucose and cellobiose produced during enzymatic hydrolysis of α-cellulose extracted from oak late-wood annual rings

We present the first results concerning interannual variations in concentrations of glucose and cellobiose, obtained through enzymatic hydrolysis of α‐cellulose. The α‐cellulose was extracted from late‐wood of oak. The tree‐ring chronologies, wood components and their physical and chemical properties provide information about the ecosystem in which the tree grew, and thus information regarding climate variability and the impact of human activity in the past. The large molecular size and insolubility make it difficult to determine precisely the chemical and physical properties of the intact cellulose polymer. Enzymatic hydrolysis is the principal method of degradation of cellulose. In this study the feasibility has been examined of characterizing α‐cellulose through analysis by mass spectrometry (MS) of the degradation products from hydrolysis. Degradation of α‐cellulose was possible without using alkaline or acid buffers. Analysis by MS provided the opportunity to obtain information on the biodegradation of saccharides. The presence of cellobiose and glucose in the degradation product was evidenced by the mass spectra. We have compared the abundances of these glucose and cellobiose ions with carbon isotope ratios, the efficiency of extraction of α‐cellulose from the wood and tree‐ring width indices. The challenge is to establish, with respect to climate changes and environmental conditions, the significance of the variations from one year to another in the observed abundances of glucose and cellobiose ions. Copyright © 2009 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd.