Screening Diverse Fungi for Laccases of Varying Properties

Abstract

Qualitative screening of 295 fungi for laccases yielded 125 laccase positive ones, mostly basidiomycetes. Fifty of these were tested for laccase activity at pH 3.0, 4.5 and 6.0. Most showed maximum activity at pH 4.5, a few showed a broad activity range, two were optimal at pH 3.0 and only the mitosporic fungus Beltraniella sp. was best at pH 6. Most of the 25 fungi assayed at three different temperatures had an optimum at 45°C. The basidiomycete Auricularia sp. acted best at 30°C, while three others showed best activity at 60°C. This study shows the potential of screening diverse fungi for laccase with varying pH and temperature preferences for different applications.

Basidiomycota isolated from the Mediterranean Sea – Phylogeny and putative ecological roles

“…Among marine fungi, the understudied Basidiomycota may be an untapped source of potentially novel enzymes and bioactive compounds due to the extreme environmental conditions they adapt to (high salinity and pressure, pH, oxidative stress, low temperature, chemicals and metals) (Bodke et al, 2012;Dalmaso et al, 2015). For instance, the production of ligninolytic enzymes, such as peroxidases and laccases, is well documented in the sponge derived strain Peniophora sp.…”

Immunoassays of fungal laccases for screening of natural enzymes and control of recombinant enzyme production

“…For example, in the work of Ref. , a qualitative screening of about 300 fungi for laccases was carried out, and for 125 of them, the result was positive. High‐throughput screening assays were used for investigations into lignin degradation by various organisms or screening for mutant libraries during the production of recombinant strains .…”

Melanin production and laccase mediated oxidative stress alleviation during fungal-fungal interaction among basidiomycete fungi

“…Qualitative screening was done by inoculating a 5 mm diameter mycelial disc of 5-day old culture onto PDA plates containing 4 mM guaiacol (Bodke et al 2012 ). Intense brown coloration around the fungal colony was considered positive for laccase production.…”