Three different amino acids were adsorbed onto the surface of microcrystalline cellulose, which caused changes in the polarity and roughness at the cellulose surface. The adsorptions partially modified the hydrogen bonding network of the cellulose structure, leading to more reactive cellulose residues that were facilely oxidised to gluconic acid by oxygen in the presence of gold zeolite supported catalysts. The conversion of cellulose and the selectivity for gluconic acid was controlled by the identity and amount of amino acid adsorbed onto the cellulose and the extra-framework cation in the zeolite support. (C) 2013 Elsevier B.V. All rights reserved.