The lignin extracted from the forages by the acetyl bromide reagent (acetyl bromide lignin - AcBrL) to be used as a reference standard for the quantitative spectrophotometric determination of lignin could not originate from intact plant because of interference of other substances, which absorb ultraviolet light at the same wavelength of lignin. It is then recommended that lignin extraction be performed in one of the following materials: cell wall itself (CW), neutral detergent fiber (NDF), or acid detergent fiber (ADF). The lignin extraction yields as well as the spectrographic pattern of those were evaluated in these three compounds that came from diverse forage plants. On the average, extraction yields of AcBrL were fairly uniform among them; however as the concentration of ADF was the lowest among all preparations (mainly due to hemicellulose solubilization) and as far this preparation did not exhibit higher lignin extraction capacity, the AcBrL concentration from ADF on a whole plant basis was the lowest observed. The ultraviolet light absorption from the diverse lignin was unequal, as revealed by the graphic spectrograms, which would suggest that the cell wall preparation used for lignin isolation must be the same for the final determination of lignin concentration.
acetyl bromide lignin; acid detergent fiber; cell wall; neutral detergent fiber; spectrophotometric method
