Decolorizing an anthraquinone dye by Phlebia brevispora: Intra-species characterization

Remazol brilliant blue R (RBBR) is an anthraquinone dye derived from anthracene that is decolorized by a white rot fungus, Phlebia brevispora. Interestingly, P. brevispora produces two phenomena of yellowish and pinkish colors during the degradation of RBBR. Here, we characterized the decolorization of RBBR by P. brevispora. The fungus was significantly different between the two colors via UV spectrophotometry, and the morphology of the hyphae observed in the respective color culture was also entirely different. Moreover, both of the two ligninolytic enzymes, laccase and manganese-dependent peroxidase (MnP), were remarkably stimulated in the yellowish culture at the beginning of the decolorization. It is possible that the RBBR decolorizing mechanism might be primarily related to the amount of laccase and MnP produced in the yellowish culture. Thus, the decolorized color may be rapidly estimated at initial period of incubation. In addition, GeneFishing technology revealed that two genes were differentially expressed in yellowish culture.