<p>Corn (Zea mays) cob is composed of three tissue fractions: chaff (21.1wt%), woody ring (77.5wt%) and pith (1.4wt%). In this study, the distribution of lignin in three tissue fractions was exmined. As a result, it was found that the lignin contents in three fractions were similar, while the contents of cinnamic acids were different. From the alkaline nitrobenzene oxidation analysis, lignin in all fractions were composed of guaiacyl, syringyl and p-hydroxyphenyl lignins, while their ratios were different. By ultraviolet (UV) microscopy, the component cells were different among these three fractions. In addition, the concentrations of lignin were different between the cell wall and middle lamella. Furthermore, it was found that the cinnamic acids were found out not to be uniformly distributed.</p>