The most powerful lignin‐degraders among the 82 microbial strains isolated during a screening of ligninolytic microorganisms from forest soil were identified as Penicillium chrysogenum, Fusarium oxysporum and Fusarium solani. These fungi imperfecti mineralized 27.4%, 23.5% and 22.6% of 14C‐labelled milled wood lignin (MWL) from wheat straw after 28 days of incubation in liquid media. Degradation of MWL from pine by P. chrysogenum was 8% and 19% when it was evaluated by spectrophotometry and Klason lignin, respectively, but this substrate was hardly mineralized. All fungi were able to attack the hemicellulosic, cellulosic and also lignin fractions of wheat straw during solid‐state fermentation, F. solani being capable of degrading about 25% of both carbohydrates and lignin. When the selected fungi were tested for dye decolourization, they all readily attacked the polymeric dye Remazol brilliant blue R (RBBR) and also poly R‐478 to a minor extent.

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A strain of Penicillium chrysogenum has been isolated from pine forest soils in Tenerife (Canary Islands). This strain was capable of utilizing hydroxylated and nonhydroxylated aromatic compounds, in particular cinnamic acid, as its sole carbon source. In an optimum medium with high levels of nitrogen (25.6 mM) and low levels of glucose (5.5 mM), it was able to decolorize Poly B-411 and to transform kraft, organosolv, and synthetic dehydrogenative polymerisate lignins. After 30 days of incubation, the amount of recovered kraft lignin was reduced to 83.5 and 91.3% of that estimated for uninoculated controls by spectrophotometry and klason lignin, respectively. At the same time, the pattern of molecular mass distribution of the lignin remaining in cultures was changed. The amount of organosolv lignin recovered from cultures was reduced to 90.1 and 94.6% of the initial amount as evaluated by spectrophotometry and klason lignin, respectively. About 6% of total applied radioactivity of 014CH3-organosolv lignin was recovered as 14CO2 after 30 days of incubation, and 18.5% of radioactivity from insoluble 014CH3-organosolv lignin was solubilized. After 26 days of incubation, 2.9%o of 14C_P-dehydrogenative polymerisate and 4.1% of 14C-ring-dehydrogenative polymerisate evolved as 14co2.