Laccase activities of a soil fungus Penicillium simplicissimum in relation to lignin degradation

Effects of Fungi-Mediated Solid-State Fermentation on Phenolic Contents and Antioxidant Activity of Brown and White Teff (Eragrostis tef (Zucc.) Trotter) Grains

Teff (Eragrostis tef (Zucc.) Trotter) is a tropical cereal used in preparing a staple food in Ethiopia and Eritrea called injera. Phenolic compounds are available in soluble and bound forms in cereals like teff. Therefore, their bioaccessibility depends on their release from the food matrix. Different food processing methods including fermentation have been applied since ancient times to aid bioaccessibility and improve the properties of food products. This study aimed at investigating changes in phenolic profiles and antioxidant activities of white and brown teff grains during mushroom-mediated solid-state fermentation. Fermentation with mushroom considerably increased total phenol contents of the soluble phenol fraction with Ganoderma lucidum showing relatively higher increase than Pleurotus ostreatus. Bound fraction of teff phenol did not show noticeable changes after fermentation with the two mushroom strains. Such changes are suggested to be attributed to activities of fungal enzymes such as amylases, xylanases, and proteases that induce structural breakdown of grain components including cell walls leading to the liberation or synthesis of a variety of phenolic compounds. On the other hand, total flavonoid content of teff significantly decreased after fermentation by both strains. This is also believed to be caused by the action of fungal polyphenol oxidases that catalyze the oxidation of a variety of phenolic compounds including flavonoids to o-quinones.

Microbiota in Waterlogged Archaeological Wood: Use of Next-Generation Sequencing to Evaluate the Risk of Biodegradation

Waterlogged archaeological wood (WAW) is considered a precious material, first-hand account of past civilizations. Like any organic material, it is subjected to biodegradative action of microorganisms whose activity could be particularly fast and dangerous during the phases of excavation, storage and restoration. The present work aimed to characterize the microorganisms present in WAW during these tricky periods to evaluate the biological risk it is exposed to. The bacterial and fungal communities inhabiting woods coming from two archaeological sites (Pisa and Naples) were investigated through Next-Generation Sequencing (NGS). High-throughput sequencing of extracted DNA fragments was performed using the reversible terminator-based sequencing chemistry with the Illumina MiSeq platform. The analyses revealed that the two archaeological sites showed distinct richness and biodiversity, as expected. In all the WAWs, the bacterial community harbored mainly Proteobacteria, whereas Bacteroidetes was well represented only in Naples communities and taxa belonging to the phyla Chloroflexi only in the Pisa site. Concerning the fungal community, the two sites were dominated by different phyla: Ascomycota for Naples samples and Basidiomycota for Pisa. Interestingly, most of the identified bacterial and fungal taxa have cellulolytic or ligninolytic ability. These results provide new and useful background information concerning the composition of WAW microbiota and the threat it represents for this precious material.

Enzymatic scarification of Anacamptis morio (Orchidaceae) seed facilitates lignin degradation, water uptake and germination

The seed coat of many species contains hydrophobic lignins, and in soil the action of microbial ligninases may contribute to release from dormancy. Laboratory use of ligninases to stimulate germination is promising because of the specific action on the seed coat, whereas chemical scarification agents may also corrode the embryo. We hypothesised that exposure of Anacamptis morio (Orchidaceae) seeds to fungal laccase would stimulate germination, and that the mechanism involves lignin degradation and increased imbibition. Germination capacity in vitro was quantified with 1 U filter-sterilised laccase added to agar medium following autoclaving, compared to a 10% bleach solution (standard bleach surface sterilisation/scarification method used in orchid seed sowing). Lignin degradation was quantified using an optical method (phloroglucinol-HCl staining) combined with image analysis, following experimental pre-treatments involving immersion in laccase solution, distilled water (negative control) or bleach (positive control). Water uptake after experimental treatments was quantified as the proportion of seeds exhibiting visible uptake of an aqueous fluorochrome under UV excitation. Laccase stimulated a doubling of germination in vitro with respect to bleach surface sterilisation/scarification alone, from 23.7 to 49.8% (P = 0.007). Laccase and bleach methods both significantly decreased the optical signal of phloroglucinol (for laccase, to 79.9 ± 1.3% of controls; anova: F = 10.333, P = 0.002). Laccase resulted in a modest but highly significant (P < 0.0001) increase in water uptake with respect to the control (11.7%; cf 99.4% for bleach). Laccase scarification can stimulate germination of A. morio through a mechanism of targeted seed coat degradation. The results demonstrate the potential of this relatively non-invasive enzymatic scarification technique.

Effect of lignocellulosic enzymes on the treatment of mature landfill leachate

The inherent necessity to remediate refractory contaminants from the toxic problematic wastewater like mature landfill leachate (MLL) has become a global challenge. This study investigated the effect of a potentially sustainable technological approach, i.e. lignocellulosic enzymatic activities (lignin-peroxidase, manganese-peroxidase and laccase), produced from six selected fungi on the removal efficiency of chemical oxygen demand (COD) and soluble COD (sCOD) from the MLL. The COD/sCOD removal percentage was significantly increased with higher enzymatic activities. Tyromyces chioneus was revealed to be the first ever fungi that produced significant amount of all three enzymes. Penicillium sp. and Tyromyces chioneus were the most effective strains, which removed 66% and 59% of COD, and 64% and 57% of sCOD, respectively. The maximum lignin-peroxidase, manganese-peroxidase and laccase enzymatic activities were 19.3 and 26.9 U/L by Tyromyces chioneus, and 249.8 U/L by Penicillium sp, respectively. It was concluded that lignocellulosic biomass could be a sustainable and advanced biological treatment option to remove refractory components from MLL.

Ability of different edible fungi to degrade crop straw

Extracellular enzymes play an important role in the growth and development of edible fungi. Extracellular enzyme activities have also become an important object of measurement. In this study, Agaricus brunnescens Peck, Coprinus comatus, and Pleurotus ostreatus were compared in terms of their enzyme production in liquid-and solid-state fermentation. Differences in the ability of various types of edible fungi to utilize biomass raw materials were analyzed by monitoring the fiber degradation rate during crop straw degradation, and changes in their cellulolytic enzyme systems during growth and metabolism were discussed. This study provided insights into the changes in the lignocellulose degradation ability of edible fungi during their growth and facilitated the discovery of new approaches to accelerate their growth in culture.

Biodegradation of alkali lignin by a newly isolated Rhodococcus pyridinivorans CCZU-B16

Based on the Prussian blue spectrophotometric method, one high-throughput screening strategy for screening lignin-degrading microorganisms was built on 24-well plate at room temperature. One high activity of alkali lignin-degrading strain Rhodococcus pyridinivorans CCZU-B16 was isolated from soil. After the optimization of biodegradation, 30.2% of alkali lignin (4 g/L) was degraded under the nitrogen-limited condition (30/1 of C/N ratio; g/g) at 30 °C for 72 h. It was found that syringyl (S) units and guaiacyl (G) in lignin decreased after biodegradation. Moreover, the accumulated lipid in cells had a fatty acid profile rich in C16 and C18 with four major constituent fatty acids including palmitic acid (C16:0; 22.4%), palmitoleic acid (C16:1; 21.1%), stearic acid (C18:0; 16.2%), and oleic acid (C18:1; 23.1%). In conclusion, Rhodococcus pyridinivorans CCZU-B16 showed high potential application in future.

Fungal biodegradation of anthracene-polluted cork: A comparative study

The efficiency of cork waste in adsorbing aqueous polycyclic aromatic hydrocarbons (PAHs) has been previously reported. Biodegradation of contaminated cork using filamentous fungi could be a good alternative for detoxifying cork to facilitate its final processing. For this purpose, the degradation efficiency of anthracene by three ligninolytic white-rot fungi (Phanerochaete chrysosporium, Irpex lacteus and Pleurotus ostreatus) and three non-ligninolytic fungi which are found in the cork itself (Aspergillus niger, Penicillium simplicissimum and Mucor racemosus) are compared. Anthracene degradation by all fungi was examined in solid-phase cultures after 0, 16, 30 and 61 days. The degradation products of anthracene by P. simplicissimum and I. lacteus were also identified by GC-MS and a metabolic pathway was proposed for P. simplicissimum. Results show that all the fungi tested degraded anthracene. After 61 days of incubation, approximately 86%, 40%, and 38% of the initial concentration of anthracene (i.e., 100 µM) was degraded by P. simplicissimum, P. chrysosporium and I. lacteus, respectively. The rest of the fungi degraded anthracene to a lesser extent (<30%). As a final remark, the results obtained in this study indicate that P. simplicissimum, a non-ligninolytic fungi characteristic of cork itself, could be used as an efficient degrader of PAH-contaminated cork.

Study on biodegradation process of lignin by FTIR and DSC

The biodegradation process of lignin by Penicillium simplicissimum was studied to reveal the lignin biodegradation mechanisms. The biodegradation products of lignin were detected using Fourier transform infrared spectroscopy (FTIR), UV-Vis spectrophotometer, different scanning calorimeter (DSC), and stereoscopic microscope. The analysis of FTIR spectrum showed the cleavage of various ether linkages (1,365 and 1,110 cm(-1)), oxidation, and demethylation (2,847 cm(-1)) by comparing the different peak values in the corresponding curve of each sample. Moreover, the differences (Tm and ΔHm values) between the DSC curves indirectly verified the FTIR analysis of biodegradation process. In addition, the effects of adding hydrogen peroxide (H2O2) to lignin biodegradation process were analyzed, which indicated that H2O2 could accelerate the secretion of the MnP and LiP and improve the enzymes activity. What is more, lignin peroxidase and manganese peroxidase catalyzed the lignin degradation effectively only when H2O2 was presented.

Effect of biosurfactants on laccase production and phenol biodegradation in solid-state fermentation

The effects of two biosurfactants, tea saponin (TS) and rhamnolipid (RL), on the production of laccase and the degradation of phenol by P. simplicissimum were investigated in solid-state fermentation consisting of rice straw, rice bran, and sawdust. Firstly, the effects of phenol on the fermentation process were studied in the absence of surfactants. Then, a phenol concentration of 3 mg/g in the fermentation was selected for detailed research with the addition of biosurfactants. The results showed that TS and RL at different concentrations had stimulative effects on the enzyme activity of laccase. The highest laccase activities during the fermentation were enhanced by 163.7%, 68.2%, and 23.3% by TS at concentrations of 0.02%, 0.06%, and 0.10%, respectively. As a result of the enhanced laccase activity, the efficiency of phenol degradation was also improved by both biosurfactants. RL caused a significant increase of fungal biomass in the early stage of the fermentation, while TS had an inhibitory effect in the whole process. These results indicated that RL could mitigate the negative effects of phenol on fungal growth and consequently improve laccase production and phenol degradation. TS was potentially applicable to phenol-polluted solid-state fermentation.

Isolation and characterisation of polychlorinated biphenyl (PCB) degrading fungi from a historically contaminated soil

Background

Polychlorinated biphenyls (PCBs) are widespread toxic pollutants. Bioremediation might be an effective, cost competitive and environment-friendly solution for remediating environmental matrices contaminated by PCBs but it is still unsatisfactory, mostly for the limited biodegradation potential of bacteria involved in the processes. Very little is known about mitosporic fungi potential in PCB bioremediation and their occurrence in actual site historically contaminated soils. In the present study, we characterised the native mycoflora of an aged dump site soil contaminated by about 0.9 g kg^-1 of Aroclor 1260 PCBs and its changing after aerobic biotreatment with a commercial complex source of bacteria and fungi. Fungi isolated from the soil resulting from 120 days of treatment were screened for their ability to adsorb or metabolise 3 target PCBs.

Results

The original contaminated soil contained low loads of few fungal species mostly belonging to the Scedosporium, Penicillium and Aspergillus genera. The fungal load and biodiversity generally decreased throughout the aerobic treatment. None of the 21 strains isolated from the treated soil were able to grow on biphenyl (200 mg L^-1) or a mixture of 2-chlorobiphenyl, 4,4'-dichlorobiphenyl and 2,2',5,5'-tetrachlorobiphenyl (20 mg L^-1 each) as sole carbon sources. However, 16 of them grew in a mineral medium containing the same PCBs mixture and glucose (10 g L^-1). Five of the 6 isolates, which displayed the faster and more extensive growth under the latter conditions, were found to degrade the 3 PCBs apparently without the involvement of ligninolytic enzymes; they were identified as Penicillium chrysogenum, Scedosporium apiospermum, Penicillium digitatum and Fusarium solani. They are the first PCB degrading strains of such species reported so far in the literature.

Conclusion

The native mycoflora of the actual site aged heavily contaminated soil was mainly constituted by genera often reported as able to biodegrade organopollutants. It was generally remarkably reduced after the biotreatment, which however resulted in the selection of few mitosporic fungal species able to biodegrade PCBs. This is the first study in which an extensive characterisation of the cultivable indigenous mycoflora of an actual site aged PCB contaminated soil, as well as its changes upon soil bioremediation treatment, was conducted. Moreover, this is the first paper in which 5 strains ascribable to 4 mitosporic species able to biodegrade PCB are reported in the literature.

An electrochemical sensor for detection of laccase activities from Penicillium simplicissimum in compost based on carbon nanotubes modified glassy carbon electrode

An electrochemical sensor for detection of the activity of laccase from Penicillium simplicissimum isolated from the composting has been developed. The sensor is based on glassy carbon electrode modified with multi-wall carbon nanotubes (CNTs). The introduction of CNTs into this system can greatly enhance the electrochemical signal in this assay more sensitively, selectively and rapidly than that in conventional spectrophotometric assays. It was found that the optimal pH value of the electrolyte was 5.6. The results showed a good linear correlation between the current and the concentration of laccase activities measured by spectrophotometry, where the current slope was measured by chronoamperometry with a coefficient of 0.9835. Therefore, this electrochemical sensor can be used for rapid detection of laccase activity from P. simplicissimum. Furthermore, it may be potentially used for rapid quantification of P. simplicissimum according to the relationship between the laccase activities and the biomass.