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Arbuscular mycorrhizal fungi (AMF) are critical for soil ecosystem services as they enhance plant growth and soil quality via nutrient cycling and carbon storage. Considering the growing emphasis on sustainable agricultural practices, this study investigated the effects of conventional and organic farming practices on AMF diversity, abundance, and ecological functions in maize, pepper, and potato-cultivated soils. Using next-generation sequencing and quantitative PCR, we assessed AMF diversity and abundance in addition to soil health indicators such as phosphorus content, total nitrogen, and soil organic carbon. Our findings revealed that, while no significant differences in soil physicochemical parameters or AMF diversity were observed across farming systems when all crop data were combined, organic farming significantly enhances AMF abundance and fosters beneficial microbial ecosystems. These ecosystems play vital roles in nutrient cycling and carbon storage, underscoring the importance of organic practices in promoting robust AMF communities that support ecosystem services. This study not only deepens our understanding of AMF's ecological roles but also highlights the potential of organic farming to leverage these benefits for improving sustainability in agricultural practices. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Microplastics (MPs), which result from the breakdown of plastic waste, have become ubiquitous in various environmental compartments. The "plastisphere", referring to the unique bacterial communities inhabiting plastic debris, includes pathogens and antibiotic resistance genes. Wastewater treatment plants (WWTPs) are hotspots for plastisphere formation, but significant releases of MPs still occur. This study investigates the microbial communities on polystyrene (PS) MPs through in situ deployment across primary, secondary, and tertiary WWTP stages. Biofilms formed on the PS MPs exhibited greater bacterial diversity than background waters. Certain genera acted as pioneers in the biofilms, attracting and facilitating the accumulation of other microbes from background waters. The biofilms formed on the MPs became more resistant to treatment processes compared to freely floating bacteria. This study sheds light on the evolution of microbial communities on MPs within WWTPs and their roles as carriers of microbes in effluents, with implications for environmental and public health. Understanding these dynamics is crucial for effective control over MPs and microbial pollution in WWTPs. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Arbuscular mycorrhizal fungi (AMF) form a vital symbiotic relationship with plants. Through their extensive hyphal networks, AMF extend the absorptive capacity of plant roots, thereby allowing plants to reach otherwise inaccessible micronutrient sources. Iron, a critical micronutrient involved in photosynthesis and other metabolic processes, often becomes inaccessible owing to its tendency to form insoluble complexes in soil. AMF symbiosis significantly ameliorates this challenge by enhancing iron uptake and homeostasis in plants, altering root architecture, and producing root exudates that improve iron solubility. Moreover, the interaction with diverse soil bacteria, particularly plant growth-promoting rhizobacteria, can potentiate the benefits of AMF symbiosis. Siderophores are low-molecular-weight chelators with iron-binding capacities produced by various microorganisms and plant roots. They play pivotal roles in regulating intracellular iron and have been identified in different mycorrhizal associations, including AMF. While molecular mechanisms behind AMF-mediated iron uptake have been partially explored, the intricate networks involving AMF, plants, siderophores, and other soil microbiota are largely unknown. This review focuses on the multifaceted roles of AMF in plant–iron homeostasis, interactions with soil bacteria, and the potential of siderophores in these processes, emphasizing the possibilities for harnessing these relationships for sustainable agriculture and enhancing plant productivity. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Dormancy is a survival strategy of stressed bacteria inhabiting a various environment. Frequent dormant-active transitions owing to environmental changes play an important role in functional redundancy. However, a proper understanding of the phenotypic changes in bacteria during these transitions remains to be clarified. In this study, orthogonal approaches, such as electron microscopy, flow cytometry, and Raman spectroscopy, which can evaluate phenotypic heterogeneity at the single-cell level, were used to observe morphological and molecular phenotypic changes in resuscitated cells, and RNA sequencing (RNASeq) was used to determine the genetic characteristics associated with phenotypes. Within 12 h of the resuscitation process, morphological (cell size and shape) and physiological (growth and viability) characteristics as well as molecular phenotypes (cellular components) were found to be recovered to the extent that they were similar to those in active cells. The recovery rate and detailed phenotypic properties of the resuscitated cells differed significantly depending on the type or concentration of carbon sources. RNASeq analysis revealed that genes related to translation were significantly upregulated under all resuscitation conditions. The simpler the carbon source (e.g., glucose), the higher the expression of genes involved in cellular repair, and the more complex the carbon source (e.g., beef extract), the higher the expression of genes associated with increased energy production associated with cellular aerobic respiration. This study of phenotypic plasticity of resuscitated cells provides fundamental insight into understanding the adaptive fine-tuning of the microbiome in response to environmental changes and the functional redundancy resulting from phenotype heterogeneity. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Methylmercury (MeHg), which is formed in rice paddy soil, exhibits strong neurotoxicity through bioaccumulation in the food chain. A few groups of microorganisms drive both mercury methylation and nitrogen fixation in the rhizosphere. Little is known about how the shifted soil microbial community by Hg contamination affects nitrogen fixation rate and plant growth in paddy soil. Here, we examined how stimulated short-term Hg amendment affects the nitrogen fixing microbial community and influences plant-microbe interactions. Soil was treated with low (0.2 mg/kg) and high (1.1 mg/kg) concentrations of Hg for 4 weeks; then, rice (Oryza sativa) was planted and grown for 12 weeks. The nitrogen-fixation rate and rice growth were measured. The diversity and structure of the microbial community were analyzed by sequencing the nifH gene before and after rice cultivation. Hg treatments significantly decreased the nitrogen fixation rate and dry weight of the rice plants. The structure of the nifH-harboring community was remarkably changed after rice cultivation depending on Hg treatments. Iron- or sulfate-reducing bacteria, including Desulfobacca, Desulfoporosimus, and Geobacter, were observed as legacy response groups; their abundances increased in the soil after Hg treatment. The high abundance of those groups were maintained in control, but the abundance drastically decreased after rice cultivation in the soil treated with Hg, indicating that symbiotic behavior of rice plants changes according to the legacy effects on Hg contamination. These results suggested that Hg contamination can persist in soil microbial communities, affecting their nitrogen-fixation ability and symbiosis with rice plants in paddy soil. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Flow cytometry is a promising tool used to identify the phenotypic features of bacterial communities in aquatic ecosystems by measuring the physical and chemical properties of cells based on their light scattering behavior and fluorescence. Compared to molecular or culture-based approaches, flow cytometry is suitable for the online monitoring of microbial water quality because of its relatively simple sample preparation process, rapid analysis time, and high-resolution phenotypic data. Advanced statistical techniques (e.g., denoising and binning) can be utilized to successfully calculate phenotypic diversity by processing the scatter data obtained from flow cytometry. These phenotypic diversities were well correlated with taxonomic-based diversity computed using next-generation 16S RNA gene sequencing. The protocol provided in this paper should be a useful guide for a fast and reliable flow cytometric monitoring of bacterial phenotypic diversity in aquatic ecosystems. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Harmful algal blooms (HABs) in freshwater produce toxins that pose a threat to public health and aquatic ecosystems. Although algal communities have been studied globally to understand the characteristics of HABs, the occurrence of toxic cyanobacteria in freshwater ecosystems is rarely understood. Unlike abiotic factors, the effects of biotic factors (e.g., interaction, dominance, and variability) on the occurrence of toxic cyanobacteria were overlooked due to the intricate interaction of microorganisms under different environmental conditions. To address this problem, a comprehensive ecological concept stability, which encompasses variations in species or communities due to changing biological interactions or environmental fluctuations, was applied in this study. The algal communities in six river-connected lakes in the North Han River, South Korea, were classified into high and low stability groups. The algal species belonging to diatoms and green algae groups played a major role in the interaction within the algal community in highly stable lakes, but the frequency of Microcystis led the interaction within the algal community at the center of the network in low-stability lakes. These results indicate that the interaction within the cluster is easily changed by Microcystis, where the abundance explosively increases in lakes with low algal community stability. Water quality is more strongly associated with the occurrence of toxic cyanobacteria (Microcystis and Dolichospermum). In low-stability lakes, more diverse water quality indicators are correlated with the development of toxic algae than in high-stability lakes. This paper is the first report on the importance of algal community stability in freshwater in the occurrence of toxic cyanobacteria and offers a new perspective on Microcystis monitoring and management. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Little is known about final spores components when bacteria undergo sporulation under different nutrient conditions. Different degrees of resistance and germination rates were observed in the three types of spores of Lysinibacillus boronitolerans YS11 (SD, Spores formed in Difco sporulation medium™; SC and SF, Spores formed in an agricultural byproduct medium with 10 mM CaCl2 and with 10 mM FeSO4, respectively). Stronger UV resistance was recorded for SF with 1.8–2.3-fold greater survival than SC and SD under UV treatment. The three spore types showed similar heat resistances at 80°C, but survival rates of SC and SD were much higher (∼1,000 times) than those of SF at 90°C. However, germination capacity of SF was 20% higher than those of SD and SC on Luria-Bertani agar plates for 24 h. SF germinated more rapidly in a liquid medium with high NaCl concentrations than SC and SD, but became slower under alkaline conditions. Raman spectroscopy was used to analyze the heterogeneities in the three types of vegetative cells and their spores under different nutritional conditions. Exponentially grown-each vegetative cells had different overall Raman peak values. Raman peaks of SC, SD, and SF also showed differences in adenine and amide III compositions and nucleic acid contents. Our data along with Raman spectroscopy provided the evidence that spores formed under under different growth conditions possess very different cellular components, which affected their survival and germination rates. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Raman spectroscopy is a promising tool for identifying microbial phenotypes based on single cell Raman spectra reflecting cellular biochemical biomolecules. Recent studies using Raman spectroscopy have mainly analyzed phenotypic changes caused by microbial interactions or stress responses (e.g., antibiotics) and evaluated the microbial activity or substrate specificity under a given experimental condition using stable isotopes. Lack of labelling and the nondestructive pretreatment and measurement process of Raman spectroscopy have also aided in the sorting of microbial cells with interesting phenotypes for subsequently conducting physiology experiments through cultivation or genome analysis. In this review, we provide an overview of the principles, advantages, and status of utilization of Raman spectroscopy for studies linking microbial phenotypes and functions. We expect Raman spectroscopy to become a next-generation phenotyping tool that will greatly contribute in enhancing our understanding of microbial functions in natural and engineered systems. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

We introduce a transparent diode that consists of a coupled junction of amorphous indium tin zinc oxide and Al2O3. In addition, the photo-sensing behavior under visible light was investigated. In the initial dark state, the diode exhibited maximum on current density of 10 A/cm2 and off current density of 10−9 A/cm2–10−10 A/cm2. Because of the extremely low off current level, it exhibited an excellent on/off ratio of 1010–1011. The light sensibility of the diode started from as low as 250 lux, and the off current density increased about three orders of magnitude under the exposure of 3000 lux. Such an off current density increase turned out to be mainly due to the short wavelength (400 nm) visible light, which has enough energy to generate photo-electrons from the valence band or deep level trap site to the conduction band. Meanwhile, a square pulse type dynamic light sensing test resulted in residual current at the dark state. The residual current was electrically removed by applying a forward bias, and the identical light sensing reproducibility was confirmed by repetitive trials. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Soils affected by animal wastes have simultaneously high N and P contents. Despite the reports of high nitrous oxide (N2O) emissions in such environments, the role that P plays in N2O dynamics has not yet been systematically investigated. Here, we report the enhancement effect of orthophosphate (PO43−-P) abundance on N2O yields from abiotic NH2OH decomposition, which may have substantial implications to N2O emissions from nitrification in such P-rich soils. The axenic cultures of Nitrosomonas europaea, an ammonia-oxidizing bacterium previously reported to leak NH2OH, exhibited significantly higher N2O yields when incubated at higher PO43−-P concentrations. As NH4+-to-NO2− turnover and growth rates were unaffected even at the highest PO43−-P concentration examined, the abiotic interaction between extracellularly released NH2OH and PO43−-P was the most plausible mechanism of enhanced N2O emission in these nitrifier cultures. This proposed mechanism was supported by the results of abiotic NH2OH incubation whereby higher PO43−-P concentration resulted in higher N2O yield. Orthophosphate enhancement of NH2OH-to-N2O turnover was then simulated with addition of 5 μmol NH2OH to an ornithogenic soil with high PO43−-P content (23.9 ± 6.7 g/kg wet soil) and active nitrification activity after sterilization. The N2O yield, 69.0 ± 4.6%, was significantly higher than the N2O yields for other examined soils with lower PO43−-P contents (0–1.94 g/kg wet soil), and the PO43−-P contents of the examined soils exhibited strong correlation with the N2O yields. These findings suggest that N2O production from nitrification via abiotic turnover of released NH2OH may be a consequential mechanism of N2O emissions in PO43−-P-rich soils. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

We studied hydrogen (H) behavior in amorphous In-Ga-Zn-O (a-IGZO) films under X-ray irradiation by evaluating the threshold voltage (VTH) shift in a-IGZO thin film transistors (TFTs) with different H concentrations in the active layers. We fabricated three types of a-IGZO TFTs: (i) one without a buffer layer and postannealed in N2, (ii) one with a H-resolved buffer layer and postannealed in N2, and (iii) one with a H-resolved buffer layer and postannealed in a mixture of N2 and H2. All three TFTs showed a negative VTH shift after 100 Gy of X-ray exposure. The degree of VTH shift correlated with an increase in conductivity, which, in turn, corresponds to the H concentration in the active layer of the as-fabricated TFTs. Based on spectroscopic ellipsometry analysis, we confirmed a large increase in the donorlike H related D1 state after X-ray irradiation in high-H concentration a-IGZO films. In addition, an increase in the number of H2 molecules in a-IGZO films after X-ray irradiation was observed via thermal desorption spectroscopy analysis. Therefore, we conclude that the increase in conductivity and/or the resulting negative VTH shift in a-IGZO TFTs during X-ray irradiation can be attributed not only to the state transition from acceptorlike to donorlike H in the as-prepared a-IGZO but also to the incorporation of additional H radicals generated by X-ray irradiation. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Solid-phase reactions at the interface between sputtered Al-Si-Cu alloys and Ti films were investigated at the atomic scale by high-resolution transmission electron microscopy and energy dispersive x-ray spectroscopy (EDS) coupled with a field-emission (scanning) transmission electron microscope. The analysis results showed that the interface is composed of an amorphous-like Ti-Si layer, an intermediate-crystalline layer, and a Si-dissolved TiAl[sub 3] layer containing dissolved Si TiAl[sub 3] with a crystallographic relationship with the Al film. The nanometer-scaled interlayers effectively play a role as a barrier suppressing the interdiffusion reaction of Al and Ti during annealing treatment. Further, the quantitative composition of the interlayers was revealed by the analysis of the intensity profiles obtained from EDS elemental maps. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Asian dust (AD) events have received significant attention due to their adverse effects on ecosystems and human health. However, detailed information about airborne pathogens associated with AD events is limited. This study monitored airborne bacterial communities and identified AD-specific bacteria and the potential hazards associated with these bacteria during AD events. Over a 33-month period, 40 air samples were collected under normal atmospheric conditions (non-AD events; n = 34) and during AD events (n = 6). The airborne bacterial communities in the air samples collected during non-AD events (non-AD sample) and AD events (AD sample) were evaluated using both culture-dependent and culture-independent methods. The bacterial diversity increased significantly, along with the 16S rRNA gene copy number, in AD samples (p < 0.05) and was positively correlated with PM10 concentration. High throughput sequencing of the 16S rRNA gene revealed that the relative abundance of the phylum Firmicutes increased substantially in AD samples (44.3 ± 5.0%) compared with non-AD samples (27.8 ± 4.3%). Within the phylum Firmicutes, AD samples included a greater abundance of Bacillus species (almost 23.8%) than non-AD samples (almost 13.3%). Both culture-dependent and culture-independent methods detected common predominant species closely related to Bacillus cereus during AD events. Subsequent multilocus sequence typing (MLST) and enterotoxin gene assays confirmed the presence of virulence factors in B. cereus isolates from AD samples. Furthermore, the abundance of bceT, encoding enterotoxin in B. cereus, was significantly higher in AD samples (p < 0.05). The systematic characterization of airborne bacterial communities in AD samples in this study suggests that B. cereus pose risks to public health. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Using a high-throughput metagenomic approach, we evaluated nifH -harboring bacterial communities and their assembly in the Gotjawal forest, which was naturally formed on basalt rocks with thin layer of soil. Significant differences in soil properties and community structure were observed in comparison with similar communities in various habitats, including other lava-formed forests (on Jeju Island and in Hawaii) and in regions with high humidity (Florida) or low temperatures (Alaska). nifH -harboring bacterial communities were found to assemble along gradients of environmental factors, particularly cation-exchange capacity. Unlike in other regions, in the Gotjawal forest, Paenibacillus and Clostridium , which belong to the phylum Firmicutes , were present in significantly higher proportion than in other regions. Network analysis suggested that much fewer co-occurrence relationships occurred in the Gotjawal forest than in other lava-formed forests. Our results indicate that the unique nifH -harboring bacterial community and its assembly in the Gotjawal forest are due to its distinctive soil properties, which has implications for microbial interactions and functional potentials. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Algicidal bacteria have received broad acceptance as an ecofriendly tool for controlling harmful algal blooms. However, their practical application is still limited to the lab-scale tests due to the complex alga–bacterium interactions in different nutrient statuses. In this study, the Aeromonas sp. L23 that exhibit relatively wide-spectrum in algicidal activity was isolated from a eutrophic agricultural lake. The physiological response of cyanobacteria and green to the algicidal activity under varied nutritional status were studied in an alga-bacterial co-culture. The algicidal activities of L23 against Microcystis aeruginosa UTEX LB 2385, Microcystis aeruginosa NHSB, Anabaena variabilis AG10064, Scenedesmus quadricauda AG10003, and Chlorella vulgaris AG10034 were 88 ± 1.2%, 94 ± 2.6%, 93 ± 0.5%, 82 ± 1.1%, and 47 ± 0.9%, respectively. The L23 cells had low algicidal activity in cell pellet (3%–9%) compared with the cell-free supernatant (78%–93%), indicating that the activity is induced by extracellular substances. Adding glucose, NaNO3, NH4Cl, and KH2PO4 to the co-culture raised the algicidal activity of the L23 against green algae by 5%–50%. Conversely, a 10%–20% decrease in activity occurred against the target cyanobacteria except M. aeruginosa UTEX LB 2385. These results indicated that the interspecific algicidal activity changes according to the nutritional status, which means that the alga-bacterium interaction will be more complex in the field where the nutritional status changes from time to time. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Improper decisions concerning animal carcass disposal sites pose grave threats to environmental biosecurity. However, only a few studies have focused on the effects of different land-use types on the composition of carcass-derived pollutants and microbial responses to the disturbances. This study was conducted using soil microcosms with minced pork built from arable land and forest soils for 5 weeks. To compare the risk induced from different land-use types by carcass burial, the soil properties, the microbial community, and multiple-antibiotic-resistant bacteria were evaluated for microcosm containing 0, 1.5 and 7.5 g of minced pork. The abiotic properties, including pH, organic carbon, nitrogen and phosphorus compounds, significantly increased, regardless of the land-use types and applied load masses. The microbial diversity indices of the forest soil were reduced, whereas those of the arable land remained relatively stable. The disturbances produced from carcass-derived pollutants altered the bacterial community structures differently for the different land-use types. The treatment increased multiple-antibiotic-resistant bacteria in the both soil samples, although the increase in the forest soil was significantly less compared to the arable land soils. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Bisphenol A (BPA), an endocrine-disrupting chemical, exists widely in natural waters. Advanced oxidation processes, which are based on the generation of hydroxyl radicals (OH), are one of the promising techniques for the treatment of BPA. The goal of the present study was to investigate the effect of nitrate, bicarbonate, and carbonate in wastewater treatment plant (WWTP) effluent on the removal of bisphenol A (BPA) by bench-scale electro oxidation (EO) process using DSA-Ti electrode. The removal efficiency of BPA against scavenger effect of nitrate and alkalinity was characterized under a variety of reaction time and current densities. In the current density of 3 mA/cm2, the BPA removal efficiencies showed 40% within 20 min in the presence of nitrate, whereas the BPA removal efficiency was close to 100% in the absence of nitrate. Under the same condition, 42 and 80% of BPA was removed in the presence of bicarbonate and carbonate, respectively. The results indicated that the EO process is a promising technology to remove BPA effectively in WWTPS. However, since the efficiencies of the EO process were remarkably reduced when the concentrations of anions in WWTPs increased, electrochemical technology such as EO process could be used only to oxidize the non-biodegradable compounds during the WWTP process. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Wet scrubber is widely used to remove pollutants from a furnace flue gas or from other gas streams. However, high cost for the treatment or exchange of contaminated washed water is one of the problems. Electrocoagulation (EC) is an electrochemical method for treating polluted water, whereby sacrificial anodes dissolve to produce active coagulant precursors in the solution. This technology can be used for the removal of color, anionic contaminants, and colloidal particles. The goal of the present study was evaluation of EC process for treatment of wet scrubber wastewater and optimization of the process. In this study, the influence of electrode material and electrode distance on removal efficiency (%) of nitrate, sulfate, and total suspended solids (TSS) was investigated with synthetic wastewater. Using an Al electrode, 60.6% of nitrate, 50.0% of sulfate, and 96.8% of TSS were removed by EC treatment within 30 min. In case of Fe electrode, 69.7% of nitrate, 75.0% of sulfate, and 98.8% of TSS were removed. The treatment efficiency for real wet scrubber wastewater was evaluated with Fe electrode. After 180 min of EC treatment, 50% of color, 40% of nitrate, 40% of sulfate, and 95% of TSS were removed, respectively. All these results give clear evidence that EC process can effectively reduce the TSS, nitrate, and sulfate ions from wet scrubber wastewater. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The number of functional traits of a wastewater treatment plant (WWTP) microbial community (i.e. functional richness) is thought to be an important determinant of its overall functional performance, but the ecological factors that determine functional richness remain unclear. The number of taxa within a community (i.e. taxonomic richness) is one ecological factor that might be important. Communities that contain more taxa are more likely to have more functional traits, and a positive association is therefore expected between functional and taxonomic richness. Empirical tests for this positive association among WWTP communities, however, are lacking. We address this knowledge gap by measuring the functional and taxonomic richness of 10 independent WWTP communities. We demonstrate that functional and taxonomic richness are positively associated with each other. We further demonstrate that functional and taxonomic richness are negatively associated with the effluent NH4-N and BOD5 concentrations. This led us to hypothesize that correlated variation in functional and taxonomic richness is likely related to variation in ambient nitrogen and carbon availability. We finally demonstrate that this hypothesis is consistent with the functional and taxonomic attributes of the WWTP communities. Together, our results improve our basic understanding of the ecology and functioning of WWTP communities. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

High-density polyethylene (HDPE) is a widely used organic polymer and an emerging pollutant, because it is very stable and nonbiodegradable. Several fungal species that produce delignifying enzymes are known to be promising degraders of recalcitrant polymers, but research on the decomposition of plastics is scarce. In this study, white rot fungus, Bjerkandera adusta TBB-03, was isolated and characterized for its ability to degrade HDPE under lignocellulose substrate treatment. Ash (Fraxinus rhynchophylla) wood chips were found to stimulate laccase production (activity was > 210 U/L after 10 days of cultivation), and subsequently used for HDPE degradation assay. After 90 days, cracks formed on the surface of HDPE samples treated with TBB-03 and ash wood chips in both liquid and solid states. Raman analysis showed that the amorphous structure of HDPE was degraded by enzymes produced by TBB-03. Overall, TBB-03 is a promising resource for the biodegradation of HDPE, and this work sheds light on further applications for fungus-based plastic degradation systems. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The presence of pharmaceutical products has raised emerging biorisks in aquatic environments. Fungi have been considered in sustainable approaches for the degradation of pharmaceutical compounds from aquatic environments. Soft rot fungi of the Ascomycota phylum are the most widely distributed among fungi, but their ability to biodegrade pharmaceuticals has not been studied as much as that of white rot fungi of the Basidiomycota phylum. Herein, we evaluated the capacity of the soft rot fungus Neopestalotiopsis sp. B2B to degrade pharmaceuticals under treatment of woody and nonwoody lignocellulosic biomasses. Nonwoody rice straw induced laccase activity fivefold compared with that in YSM medium containing polysaccharide. But B2B preferentially degraded polysaccharide over lignin regions in woody sources, leading to high concentrations of sugar. Hence, intermediate products from saccharification may inhibit laccase activity and thereby halt the biodegradation of pharmaceutical compounds. These results provide fundamental insights into the unique characteristics of pharmaceutical degradation by soft rot fungus Neopestalotiopsis sp. in the presence of preferred substrates during delignification. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]