The Role of Fungal Laccase in Biodegradation of Lignin

Wood components, cellulose and lignin, are degraded simultaneously and the general outline for the complementary character of carbohydrates and lignin decomposition as well as the existence of enzymatic systems combining these processes is still valid. The degradatiion of free cellulose or hemicellulose into monosaccharides has long been known to be relatively simple, but the mechanism of lignin degradatiion wasn ot solved very clearly yet. Anyway the biodegradation of woold constituents is understood at present as an enzymatic process. Kigninolytic activity has been correlated with lignin and manganese peroxidases. At present the attention is paid to laccase. Laccase oxidizes lignin molecule to phenoxy radicals and quinones . This oxidation can lead to the cleavageo f C-C or C-O bonds in the lignin phenyl-propane subunits, resulting either in degradation of both side chains and aromatic rings, or in demethylation processes. The role of laccase lies in the "activation" of some low molecular weight mediators and radicals produced by fungal cultures. Such activated factors produced also in cooperation with other enzymes are probably exported to the wood environment where they work in degradation processes as the ' enzyme messengers." It is worth mentioning that only fungi possessing laccase show demethylating activity. Thus demethylation, the process important for ligninolysis, is probably caused exclusively by laccase. Under natural conditions laccase seems to work with other fungal enzymes , mediators and mediating radicals. It has shown the possibility of direct Bjrkman lignin depolymerization by cooperative activity of laccase and glucose oxidase.