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Laccase Production By Chaetomium Elatum, A Soft-Rot Fungus, Wilson H. Howe, Joyce M. Hardin

Journal of the Arkansas Academy of Science

Though enzymes responsible for rotting wood have been studied for some time, the enzymes and enzymatic systems responsible for breaking down lignin have only begun to be discovered. The lignin-degrading enzymes produced by soft-rot fungi, in particular, have not been sufficiently studied. The present study presents evidence that the enzyme called laccase, known to be associated with lignin biodegradation, is produced by the species Chaetomium elatum, a soft-rot fungus. Cerrena unicolor, a positive control, and Chaetomium elatum were grown in culture. These species were tested for the presence of laccase using syringaldazine as a chromogenic substrate. As expected, Cerrena unicolor …