Monolignol acylation and lignin structure in some nonwoody plants: A 2D NMR study

2D NMR suggests that some angiosperms use monolignol acylation (at the γ-position) as a mechanism to control the molecular structure of lignin. Spectra revealed correlations between the ratio of acylated (A′)-to-non-acylated (A) units and both (i) the abundance of syringyl units, and (ii) the absence of β-β′ linkages in lignin.