Ligninolysis. A very peculiar microbial process
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Updated: Oct 15, 2026

Methods for Facilitating Microbial Growth on Pulp Mill Waste Streams and Characterization of the Biodegradation Potential of Cultured Microbes
Published on: December 12, 2013
1Departamento de Genética Molecular y Microbiología, Facultad de Ciencias Biológicas, Pontificia Universidad Católica de Chile, Santiago, Chile. rvicuna@genes.bio.puc.cl
Abstract:
Lignin, the most abundant renewable source of aromatic carbon on earth, consists in a highly irregular three dimensional biopolymer of oxygenated phenylpropanoid units. In natural environments, lignin is only degraded efficiently by some basidioamycetes that secrete an array of enzymes for this purpose. Recent advances in our understanding of the mechanism of lignin breakdown have revealed several features that make this process highly unique from a biochemical standpoint. This article summarizes some of them.
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