Purification and Characterization of Laccase from the White Rot Fungus Trametes versicolor

Laccase is one of the ligninolytic enzymes of white rot fungus Trametes versicolor 951022, a strain first isolated in Korea. This laccase was purified 209-fold from culture fluid with a yield of $6.2\%$ using ethanol precipitation, DEAE-Sepharose, Phenyl-Sepharose, and Sephadex G-100 chromatography. T. versicolor 951022 excretes a single monomeric laccase showing a high specific activity of 91,443 U/mg for 2,2'-azino-bis-(3-ethylbenzthiazoline-6-sulfonic acid) (ABTS) as a substrate. The enzyme has a molecular mass of approximately 97 kDa as determined by SDS-PAGE, which is larger than those of other laccases reported. It exhibits high enzyme activity over broad pH and temperature ranges with optimum activity at pH 3.0 and a temperature of $50^{\circ}C$. The $K_m$ value of the enzyme for substrate ABTS is $12.8{\mu}M$ and its corresponding $V_{max}$ value is 8125.4 U/mg. The specific activity and substrate affinity of this laccase are higher than those of other white rot fungi, therefore, it may be potentially useful for industrial purposes.