Extracellular laccase from Monilinia fructicola: isolation, primary characterization and application

Laccases are enzymes belonging to the family of blue copper oxidases. Due to their broad substrate specificity, they are widely used in many industrial processes and environmental bioremediations for removal of a large number of pollutants. During last decades, laccases attracted scientific interest also as highly promising enzymes to be used in bioanalytics. The aim of this study is to obtain a highly purified laccase from an efficient fungal producer and to demonstrate the applicability of this enzyme for analytics and bioremediation. To select the best microbial source of laccase, a screening of fungal strains was carried out and the fungus Monilinia fructicola was chosen as a producer of an extracellular enzyme. Optimal cultivation conditions for the highest yield of laccase were established; the enzyme was purified by a column chromatography and partially characterized. Molecular mass of the laccase subunit was determined to be near 35 kDa; the optimal pH ranges for the highest activity and stability are 4.5-5.0 and 3.0-5.0, respectively; the optimal temperature for laccase activity is 30 degrees C. Laccase preparation was successfully used as a biocatalyst in the amperometric biosensor for bisphenol A assay and in the bioreactor for bioremediation of some xenobiotics.

Automated summary

This study obtained a highly purified laccase from a fungal source and demonstrated its potential applications in bioanalytics and bioremediation. Through screening of fungal strains, the optimal producer of laccase was identified and key characteristics of the enzyme were determined.