The microbial decomposition of cellulose

Abstract

Despite its economic importance, the process of cellulose decomposition by microorganisms is not well understood. Contributing to this lack of understanding are the structural complexity of the cellulose macromoIecule and its natural variability. Nevertheless, the importance of certain factors is clear. These include the degree of crystallinity of the cellulose fiber, its average degree of polymerization, the extent to which cellulose is associated with other materials in the plant cell wall, the amount of moisture available, and the extent of organism-substrate interaction . Laboratory experiments and an analytical evaluation of the roIe of diffusion in ceIIuIose decomposition have emphasized the fundamental importance of the last of these factors, particularly in the ease with which decomposition is initiated.