Abstract

Ganoderma australe is a basidiomycete responsible for a natural process of selective and extensive lignin degradation. Fatty acids, thiobarbituric acid reactive substances (TBARS), Fe3+-reduction and enzymatic activities were monitored in cultures of G. australe growing on Drimys winteri wood chips. Linoleic acid was de novo synthesized, and steadily increased during 12 weeks of cultivation. Part of the unsaturated fatty acids underwent peroxidation as TBARS accumulated with biodegradation time. TBARS accumulation was proportional to the wood weight and component losses. Manganese-dependent peroxidase and lignin peroxidase were not detected in the culture extracts, whereas laccase-induced oxidation of syringaldazine peaked after 2 weeks (104±9 μmol oxidized min-1 kg-1 of dry wood), subsequently decreasing. On the other hand, nonenzymatic Fe3+-reducing activity increased as a function of cultivation time and could be involved in the initiation of lipid peroxidation. © 2006 Federation of European Microbiological Societies Published by Blackwell Publishing Ltd. All rights reserved.