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Applied and Environmental Microbiology logoLink to Applied and Environmental Microbiology
. 1976 May;31(5):714–717. doi: 10.1128/aem.31.5.714-717.1976

Microbial Degradation of Lignocellulose: the Lignin Component

Don L Crawford *, Ronald L Crawford 1
PMCID: PMC291182  PMID: 16345159

Abstract

A new procedure was developed for the study of lignin biodegradation by pure or mixed cultures of microorganisms. Natural lignocelluloses were prepared containing 14C in primarily their lignin components by feeding plants l-[U-14C]phenylalanine through their cut stems. Lignin degradation was observed in numerous soils by monitoring evolution of 14CO2 from [14C]lignin-labeled oak (Quercus albus), maple (Acer rubrum), and cattail (Typha latifola). An organism (Thermonospora fusca ATCC 27730) that is known to degrade cellulose but not lignin was shown to grow on lignocellulose in the presence of [14C]lignocelluloses without evolution of 14CO2. A known lignin degrader (a white-rot fungus, Polyporus versicolor) was shown to readily evolve 14CO2 from damp 14C-labeled cattail and 14C-labeled maple.

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Selected References

These references are in PubMed. This may not be the complete list of references from this article.

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