Cell Surface Display Fungal Laccase as a Renewable Biocatalyst for Degradation of Persistent Micropollutants Bisphenol A and Sulfamethoxazole

Laccases: Production, Expression Regulation, and Applications in Pharmaceutical Biodegradation

Laccases are a family of copper-containing oxidases with important applications in bioremediation and other various industrial and biotechnological areas. There have been over two dozen reviews on laccases since 2010 covering various aspects of this group of versatile enzymes, from their occurrence, biochemical properties, and expression to immobilization and applications. This review is not intended to be all-encompassing; instead, we highlighted some of the latest developments in basic and applied laccase research with an emphasis on laccase-mediated bioremediation of pharmaceuticals, especially antibiotics. Pharmaceuticals are a broad class of emerging organic contaminants that are recalcitrant and prevalent. The recent surge in the relevant literature justifies a short review on the topic. Since low laccase yields in natural and genetically modified hosts constitute a bottleneck to industrial-scale applications, we also accentuated a genus of laccase-producing white-rot fungi, Cerrena, and included a discussion with regards to regulation of laccase expression.

Layer-by-Layer-Assembled Laccase Enzyme on Stimuli-Responsive Membranes for Chloro-Organics Degradation

Functionalized membranes provide versatile platforms for the incorporation of biocatalysts and nanostructured materials for efficient and benign environmental remediation. The existing techniques for remediating chloro-organics in water consist of both physical and chemical means mostly using metal oxide-based catalysts, despite associated environmental concerns. To offer bioinspired remediation as an alternative, we herein demonstrate a layer-by-layer approach to immobilize laccase enzyme onto pH-responsive functionalized membranes for the degradation of chloro-organics in water. The efficacy of these bioinspired membranes toward dechlorination of 2,4,6-trichlorophenol (TCP) is demonstrated under a pressure-driven continuous flow mode (convective flow) for the first time to the best of our knowledge. Over 80% of the initial TCP was degraded at an optimum flow rate under an applied air pressure of about 0.7 bar or lower. This corresponds to degradation of a substantial amount of the initial substrate in only 36 s residence time, whereas it takes hours for degradation in a batch reaction. This, in fact, demonstrates an energy efficient flow-through system with potentially large-scale applications. Comparison of the stability of the enzyme in the solution phase versus immobilized on the membrane phase showed a loss of some 65% of enzyme activity in the solution phase after 22 d, whereas the membrane-bound enzyme lost only a negligible percentage of the activity in a comparable time span. Finally, the membrane was exposed to rigorous cycles of TCP degradation trials to study its reusability. The primary results reveal a loss of only 14% of the initial activity after 4 cycles of use in a period of 25 d, demonstrating its potential to be reused. Regeneration of the functionalized membrane was also validated by dislodging the immobilized enzyme, followed by immobilization of fresh enzyme onto the membrane.