Characterisation of Chilean hazelnut (Gevuina avellana) tissues: light microscopy and cell wall polysaccharides

By applying several differential staining techniques and light microscopy, the structure and composition of Chilean hazelnut (Gevuina avellana) seeds were analysed. The structure of the G avellana seed is very simple, with a thin, heavily lignified seed coat and two voluminous cotyledons. The embryo food reserves are uniformly distributed over the cotyledon cells. The cell wall polysaccharides were recovered from the alcohol‐insoluble residue by mild treatment with warm chlorite solution and sequential extraction with alkali solutions of increasing concentration. FT‐IR spectra in the 1200–850 cm^?1 region were used together with chemometric techniques to distinguish the hemicellulosic and pectic polysaccharides in the extracts. The most abundant extracts were fractionated by graded precipitation in ethanol. A xyloglucan was identified by ¹H and ¹³C NMR as the major hemicellulosic polysaccharide, with a sugar composition of 4Glc:3.5Xyl:1Gal:0.5Fuc. The hazelnut cell walls are composed of equivalent amounts of pectic polysaccharides, xyloglucans and cellulose. © 2003 Society of Chemical Industry