In: Sydowia 75, (2023): 243-257; ISSN 0082-0598, DOI 10.12905/0380.sydowia75-2023-0243, Published online on February 7, 2023

Characterization and comparative evaluation of fungi resistant to PAHs collected in Lithuania and their consortia

Nicola Tiso,*, Jurgita Mikašauskaite-Tiso, Audrius Maruška, Mantas Stankevicius, Ona Ragažinskiene, Enrica Donati, Donatas Levišauskas, Tomas Drevinskas, Kristina Bimbiraite-Surviliene, Ruta Mickiene & Vilma Kaškoniene

1 Instrumental Analysis Open Access Centre, Faculty of Natural Sciences, Vytautas Magnus University, Vileikos st. 8, LT-40444, Kaunas Lithuania
2 Botanical Garden of Vytautas Magnus University, Ž. E. Žilibero 6, LT-46324 Kaunas, Lithuania
3 National Research Council, Istituto per i Sistemi Biologici, Area della Ricerca di Roma 1, via Salaria Km 29.300-00015, Monterotondo (Rome), Italy
4 Process Control Department, Kaunas University of Technology, Studentu¸ St. 50, LT-51368, Kaunas, Lithuania

* e-mail: nicola.tiso@vdu.lt

Tiso N., Mikašauskaite-Tiso J., Maruška A., Stankevicius M., Ragažinskiene O., Donati E., Levišauskas D., Drevinskas T., Bimbiraite-Surviliene K., Mickiene R. & Kaškoniene V. (2023) Characterization and comparative evaluation of fungi resistant to PAHs collected in Lithuania and their consortia. – Sydowia 75: 243–257.

The screening and the selection of efficient lignin-degrading fungi are stages of significant importance for their further application in the bioremediation of matrices contaminated by polycyclic aromatic hydrocarbons (PAHs), coal tar and creosote. This research aims to assess the potential in bioremediation of a group of eight fungal strains, previously collected in various Lithuanian habitats and selected for their resistance to PAHs and coal tar, by means of characterizing their ability to produce ligninolytic enzymes and their capability to generate a synergistic effect while co-cultured. The interactions in all the 36 possible pairs created from the eight isolates and the reference strain Pleurotus ostreatus SMR684 were investigated to assess the suitability for co-growth and the possibility to increase the production of ligninolytic enzymes. The applied methodology based on simple and relatively fast procedures appears to be valuable to give a preliminary evaluation of the modifications in the biomass development and ligninolytic enzyme production and for the determination of possible consortia of fungi.
The consortia of Pleurotus sp. with Schizophyllum sp. and Irpex lacteus with Bjerkandera adusta, Fomitopsis pinicola and Pleurotus sp., have shown an increase in the ligninolytic enzymatic activity and demonstrated to be the most promising for further applications.

Keywords: bioremediation, co-culture, creosote-treated wood, ligninolytic enzymes, white-rot fungi.