Search

The antibacterial agent can be extracted from plants, animals, and microorganisms such as fungi. The potential antibacterial activity of laccase derived from fungi remains limited in current reports. This study aimed to investigate the characteristics of laccase from Indonesian white rot fungi (WRF) and explore its potential as an antibacterial agent. The laccases were produced by Trametes hirsuta D7, Trametes hirsuta EDN 082, Leiotrametes menziesii BRB 73, and Lentinus sajor-caju BRB 12 using oil palm empty fruit bunch as a substrate. The results showed that the Indonesian WRF tested produced brownish-yellow laccase. FTIR analysis demonstrated similar peak patterns but distinct absorption intensities among the laccases. Trametes hirsuta D7 gained 0.044 U/ml of the greatest laccase activity. Laccase, with minimal activity of 0.001 U/ml–0.026 U/ml, suppressed the propagation of Propionibacterium acnes and Staphylococcus aureus. Escherichia coli and Pseudomonas aeruginosa could be inhibited by the laccase with a minimum activity of 0.002 U/ml–0.044 U/ml. However, S. aureus and E. coli showed the Minimum Bactericidal Concentration in the laccase activity range of 0.018 U/ml–0.308 U/ml. Gram-positive and Gramnegative bacteria grow more slowly when the laccase is present, supposed the laccase as a potential antibacterial agent. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The potential of fungal co-culture of the filamentous Pestalotiopsis sp. NG007 with four different basidiomycetes - Trametes versicolor U97, Pleurotus ostreatus PL1, Cerena sp. F0607, and Polyporus sp. S133 - for accelerating biodegradation of petroleum hydrocarbons (PHCs) was studied using three different physicochemical characteristic PHCs in soil. All the combinations showed a mutual intermingling mycelial interaction on the agar plates. However, only NG007/S133 (50/50) exhibited an optimum growth rate and enzymatic activities that supported the degradation of asphalt in soil. The co-culture also degraded all fractions at even higher concentrations of the different PHCs. In addition, asphaltene, which is a difficult fraction for a single microorganism to degrade, was markedly degraded by the co-culture, which indicated that the simultaneous biodegradation of aliphatic, aromatic, resin, and asphaltene fractions had occurred in the co-culture. An examination of in-vitro degradation by the crude enzymes and the retrieval fungal culture from the soil after the experiment confirmed the accelerated biodegradation due to enhanced enzyme activities in the co-culture. The addition of piperonyl butoxide or AgNO3 inhibited biodegradation by 81-99%, which demonstrated the important role of P450 monooxygenases and/or dioxygenases in the initial degradation of the aliphatic and aromatic fractions in PHCs. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]