Screening diverse fungi for laccases of varying properties

Qualitative screening of 295 fungi for laccases yielded 125 laccase positive ones, mostly basidiomycetes. Fifty of these were tested for laccase activity at pH 3.0, 4.5 and 6.0. Most showed maximum activity at pH 4.5, a few showed a broad activity range, two were optimal at pH 3.0 and only the mitosporic fungus Beltraniella sp. was best at pH 6. Most of the 25 fungi assayed at three different temperatures had an optimum at 45°C. The basidiomycete Auricularia sp. acted best at 30°C, while three others showed best activity at 60°C. This study shows the potential of screening diverse fungi for laccase with varying pH and temperature preferences for different applications.