The Experts below are selected from a list of 37311 Experts worldwide ranked by ideXlab platform
Mark Schubert - One of the best experts on this subject based on the ideXlab platform.
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Physisporinus vitreus: a versatile white rot fungus for engineering value-added Wood products
Applied Microbiology and Biotechnology, 2011Co-Authors: Francis W. M. R. Schwarze, Mark SchubertAbstract:The credo of every scientist working in the field of applied science is to transfer knowledge “from science to market,” a process that combines (1) science (fundamental discoveries and basic research) with (2) technology development (performance assessment and optimization) and (3) technology transfer (industrial application). Over the past 7 years, we have intensively investigated the potential of the white rot fungus, Physisporinus vitreus , for engineering value-added Wood products. Because of its exceptional Wood degradation pattern, i.e., selective lignification without significant Wood Strength losses and a preferential degradation of bordered pit membranes, it is possible to use this fungus under controlled conditions to improve the acoustic properties of toneWood (i.e., “mycoWood”) as well as to enhance the uptake of preservatives and Wood modification substances in refractory Wood species (e.g., Norway spruce), a process known as “bioincising.” This minireview summarizes the research that we have performed with P. vitreus and critically discusses the challenges encountered during the development of two distinct processes for engineering value-added Wood products. Finally, we peep into the future potential of the bioincising and mycoWood processes for additional applications in the forest and Wood industry.
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Automated quantification of the impact of the Wood-decay fungus Physisporinus vitreus on the cell wall structure of Norway spruce by tomographic microscopy
Wood Science and Technology, 2011Co-Authors: M. J. Fuhr, C. Stührk, B. Münch, Francis W. M. R. Schwarze, Mark SchubertAbstract:The visualization and the quantification of microscopic decay patterns are important for the study of the impact of Wood-decay fungi in general, as well as for Wood-decay fungi and microorganisms with possible applications in biotech- nology. In the present work, a method was developed for the automated localization and quantification of microscopic cell wall elements (CWE) of Norway spruce Wood such as bordered pits, intrinsic defects, hyphae or alterations induced by white-rot fungus Physisporinus vitreus using high-resolution X-ray computed tomographic microscopy. In addition to classical destructive Wood anatomical methods such as light or laser scanning microscopy, this method allows for the first time to compute the properties (e.g., area, orientation and size distribution) of CWE of the tracheids in a sample. This is essential for modeling the influence of microscopic CWE on macroscopic properties such as Wood Strength and permeability.
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Automated Quantification of the Impact of the Wood-decay fungus Physisporinus vitreus on the Cell Wall Structure of Norway spruce by Tomographic Microscopy
arXiv: Quantitative Methods, 2011Co-Authors: M. J. Fuhr, C. Stührk, B. Münch, Francis W. M. R. Schwarze, Mark SchubertAbstract:Wood-decay fungi decompose their substrate by extracellular, degradative enzymes and play an important role in natural ecosystems by recycling carbon and minerals fixed in plants. Thereby, they cause significant damage to the Wood structure and limit the use of Wood as building material. Besides their role as biodeteriorators Wood-decay fungi can be used for biotechnological purposes, e.g. the white-rot fungus Physisporinus vitreus for improving the uptake of preservatives and Wood-modification substances of refractory Wood. Therefore, the visualization and the quantification of microscopic decay patterns are important for the study of the impact of Wood-decay fungi in general, as well as for Wood-decay fungi and microorganisms with possible applications in biotechnology. In the present work, we developed a method for the automated localization and quantification of microscopic cell wall elements (CWE) of Norway spruce Wood such as bordered pits, intrinsic defects, hyphae or alterations induced by P. vitreus using high resolution X-ray computed tomographic microscopy. In addition to classical destructive Wood anatomical methods such as light or laser scanning microscopy, our method allows for the first time to compute the properties (e.g. area, orientation and size-distribution) of CWE of the tracheids in a sample. This is essential for modeling the influence of microscopic CWE to macroscopic properties such as Wood Strength and permeability.
Bjorge Westereng - One of the best experts on this subject based on the ideXlab platform.
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a lytic polysaccharide monooxygenase with broad xyloglucan specificity from the brown rot fungus gloeophyllum trabeum and its action on cellulose xyloglucan complexes
Applied and Environmental Microbiology, 2016Co-Authors: Yuka Kojima, Barry Goodell, Kiyohiko Igarashi, Jody Jellison, Gry Alfredsen, Dejan Petrovic, Aniko Varnai, Takuya Ishida, Naoki Sunagawa, Bjorge WesterengAbstract:Fungi secrete a set of glycoside hydrolases and lytic polysaccharide monooxygenases (LPMOs) to degrade plant polysaccharides. Brown-rot fungi, such as Gloeophyllum trabeum , tend to have few LPMOs and information on these enzymes is scarce. The genome of G. trabeum encodes four AA9 LPMOs, whose coding sequences were amplified from cDNA. Due to alternative splicing, two variants of Gt LPMO9A seem to be produced, a single domain variant, Gt LPMO9A-1, and a longer variant, Gt LPMO9A-2, which contains a C-terminal domain comprising approximately 55 residues without a predicted function. We have overexpressed the phylogenetically distinct Gt LPMO9A-2 in Pichia pastoris and investigated its properties. Standard analyses, using HPAEC-PAD and MS, showed that Gt LPMO9A-2 is active on cellulose, carboxymethylcellulose and xyloglucan. Importantly, compared to other known xyloglucan-active LPMOs, Gt LPMO9A-2 has broad specificity, cleaving at any position along the β-glucan backbone of xyloglucan, regardless of substitutions. Using dynamic viscosity measurements to compare the hemicellulolytic action of Gt LPMO9A-2 to that of a well-characterized hemicellulolytic LPMO, Nc LPMO9C from Neurospora crassa , revealed that Gt LPMO9A-2 is more efficient in depolymerizing xyloglucan. These measurments also revealed minor activity on glucomannan that could not be detected by the analysis of soluble products by HPAEC-PAD and MS and that was lower than the activity of Nc LPMO9C. Experiments with co-polymeric substrates showed an inhibitory effect of hemicellulose-coating on cellulolytic LPMO activity and did not reveal additional activities of Gt LPMO9A-2. These results provide insight into the LPMO-potential of G. trabeum and provide a novel sensitive method, measurement of dynamic viscosity, for monitoring LPMO activity. Importance Currently, there are only a few methods available to analyze end-products of lytic polysaccharide monooxygenase (LPMO) activity, the most common ones being liquid chromatography and mass spectrometry. Here we present an alternative and sensitive method based on measurement of dynamic viscosity, for real-time continuous monitoring of LPMO activity in the presence of water-soluble hemicelluloses such as xyloglucan. We have used both this novel and existing analytical methods to characterize a xyloglucan-active LPMO from a brown rot fungus. This enzyme, Gt LPMO9A-2, differs from previously characterized LPMOs, in having broad substrate specificity, enabling almost random cleavage of the xyloglucan backbone. Gt LPMO9A-2 acts preferentially on free xyloglucan, suggesting a preference for xyloglucan chains that tether cellulose fibres together. The xyloglucan-degrading potential of Gt LPMO9A-2 suggests a role in decreasing Wood Strength at the initial stage of brown-rot, through degradation of the primary cell wall.
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a lytic polysaccharide monooxygenase with broad xyloglucan specificity from the brown rot fungus gloeophyllum trabeum and its action on cellulose xyloglucan complexes
Applied and Environmental Microbiology, 2016Co-Authors: Yuka Kojima, Barry Goodell, Kiyohiko Igarashi, Jody Jellison, Gry Alfredsen, Dejan Petrovic, Aniko Varnai, Takuya Ishida, Naoki Sunagawa, Bjorge WesterengAbstract:ABSTRACT Fungi secrete a set of glycoside hydrolases and lytic polysaccharide monooxygenases (LPMOs) to degrade plant polysaccharides. Brown-rot fungi, such as Gloeophyllum trabeum, tend to have few LPMOs, and information on these enzymes is scarce. The genome of G. trabeum encodes four auxiliary activity 9 (AA9) LPMOs (GtLPMO9s), whose coding sequences were amplified from cDNA. Due to alternative splicing, two variants of GtLPMO9A seem to be produced, a single-domain variant, GtLPMO9A-1, and a longer variant, GtLPMO9A-2, which contains a C-terminal domain comprising approximately 55 residues without a predicted function. We have overexpressed the phylogenetically distinct GtLPMO9A-2 in Pichia pastoris and investigated its properties. Standard analyses using high-performance anion-exchange chromatography–pulsed amperometric detection (HPAEC-PAD) and mass spectrometry (MS) showed that GtLPMO9A-2 is active on cellulose, carboxymethyl cellulose, and xyloglucan. Importantly, compared to other known xyloglucan-active LPMOs, GtLPMO9A-2 has broad specificity, cleaving at any position along the β-glucan backbone of xyloglucan, regardless of substitutions. Using dynamic viscosity measurements to compare the hemicellulolytic action of GtLPMO9A-2 to that of a well-characterized hemicellulolytic LPMO, NcLPMO9C from Neurospora crassa revealed that GtLPMO9A-2 is more efficient in depolymerizing xyloglucan. These measurements also revealed minor activity on glucomannan that could not be detected by the analysis of soluble products by HPAEC-PAD and MS and that was lower than the activity of NcLPMO9C. Experiments with copolymeric substrates showed an inhibitory effect of hemicellulose coating on cellulolytic LPMO activity and did not reveal additional activities of GtLPMO9A-2. These results provide insight into the LPMO potential of G. trabeum and provide a novel sensitive method, a measurement of dynamic viscosity, for monitoring LPMO activity. IMPORTANCE Currently, there are only a few methods available to analyze end products of lytic polysaccharide monooxygenase (LPMO) activity, the most common ones being liquid chromatography and mass spectrometry. Here, we present an alternative and sensitive method based on measurement of dynamic viscosity for real-time continuous monitoring of LPMO activity in the presence of water-soluble hemicelluloses, such as xyloglucan. We have used both these novel and existing analytical methods to characterize a xyloglucan-active LPMO from a brown-rot fungus. This enzyme, GtLPMO9A-2, differs from previously characterized LPMOs in having broad substrate specificity, enabling almost random cleavage of the xyloglucan backbone. GtLPMO9A-2 acts preferentially on free xyloglucan, suggesting a preference for xyloglucan chains that tether cellulose fibers together. The xyloglucan-degrading potential of GtLPMO9A-2 suggests a role in decreasing Wood Strength at the initial stage of brown rot through degradation of the primary cell wall.
Francis W. M. R. Schwarze - One of the best experts on this subject based on the ideXlab platform.
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Physisporinus vitreus: a versatile white rot fungus for engineering value-added Wood products
Applied Microbiology and Biotechnology, 2011Co-Authors: Francis W. M. R. Schwarze, Mark SchubertAbstract:The credo of every scientist working in the field of applied science is to transfer knowledge “from science to market,” a process that combines (1) science (fundamental discoveries and basic research) with (2) technology development (performance assessment and optimization) and (3) technology transfer (industrial application). Over the past 7 years, we have intensively investigated the potential of the white rot fungus, Physisporinus vitreus , for engineering value-added Wood products. Because of its exceptional Wood degradation pattern, i.e., selective lignification without significant Wood Strength losses and a preferential degradation of bordered pit membranes, it is possible to use this fungus under controlled conditions to improve the acoustic properties of toneWood (i.e., “mycoWood”) as well as to enhance the uptake of preservatives and Wood modification substances in refractory Wood species (e.g., Norway spruce), a process known as “bioincising.” This minireview summarizes the research that we have performed with P. vitreus and critically discusses the challenges encountered during the development of two distinct processes for engineering value-added Wood products. Finally, we peep into the future potential of the bioincising and mycoWood processes for additional applications in the forest and Wood industry.
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Automated quantification of the impact of the Wood-decay fungus Physisporinus vitreus on the cell wall structure of Norway spruce by tomographic microscopy
Wood Science and Technology, 2011Co-Authors: M. J. Fuhr, C. Stührk, B. Münch, Francis W. M. R. Schwarze, Mark SchubertAbstract:The visualization and the quantification of microscopic decay patterns are important for the study of the impact of Wood-decay fungi in general, as well as for Wood-decay fungi and microorganisms with possible applications in biotech- nology. In the present work, a method was developed for the automated localization and quantification of microscopic cell wall elements (CWE) of Norway spruce Wood such as bordered pits, intrinsic defects, hyphae or alterations induced by white-rot fungus Physisporinus vitreus using high-resolution X-ray computed tomographic microscopy. In addition to classical destructive Wood anatomical methods such as light or laser scanning microscopy, this method allows for the first time to compute the properties (e.g., area, orientation and size distribution) of CWE of the tracheids in a sample. This is essential for modeling the influence of microscopic CWE on macroscopic properties such as Wood Strength and permeability.
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Automated Quantification of the Impact of the Wood-decay fungus Physisporinus vitreus on the Cell Wall Structure of Norway spruce by Tomographic Microscopy
arXiv: Quantitative Methods, 2011Co-Authors: M. J. Fuhr, C. Stührk, B. Münch, Francis W. M. R. Schwarze, Mark SchubertAbstract:Wood-decay fungi decompose their substrate by extracellular, degradative enzymes and play an important role in natural ecosystems by recycling carbon and minerals fixed in plants. Thereby, they cause significant damage to the Wood structure and limit the use of Wood as building material. Besides their role as biodeteriorators Wood-decay fungi can be used for biotechnological purposes, e.g. the white-rot fungus Physisporinus vitreus for improving the uptake of preservatives and Wood-modification substances of refractory Wood. Therefore, the visualization and the quantification of microscopic decay patterns are important for the study of the impact of Wood-decay fungi in general, as well as for Wood-decay fungi and microorganisms with possible applications in biotechnology. In the present work, we developed a method for the automated localization and quantification of microscopic cell wall elements (CWE) of Norway spruce Wood such as bordered pits, intrinsic defects, hyphae or alterations induced by P. vitreus using high resolution X-ray computed tomographic microscopy. In addition to classical destructive Wood anatomical methods such as light or laser scanning microscopy, our method allows for the first time to compute the properties (e.g. area, orientation and size-distribution) of CWE of the tracheids in a sample. This is essential for modeling the influence of microscopic CWE to macroscopic properties such as Wood Strength and permeability.
Yuka Kojima - One of the best experts on this subject based on the ideXlab platform.
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a lytic polysaccharide monooxygenase with broad xyloglucan specificity from the brown rot fungus gloeophyllum trabeum and its action on cellulose xyloglucan complexes
Applied and Environmental Microbiology, 2016Co-Authors: Yuka Kojima, Barry Goodell, Kiyohiko Igarashi, Jody Jellison, Gry Alfredsen, Dejan Petrovic, Aniko Varnai, Takuya Ishida, Naoki Sunagawa, Bjorge WesterengAbstract:Fungi secrete a set of glycoside hydrolases and lytic polysaccharide monooxygenases (LPMOs) to degrade plant polysaccharides. Brown-rot fungi, such as Gloeophyllum trabeum , tend to have few LPMOs and information on these enzymes is scarce. The genome of G. trabeum encodes four AA9 LPMOs, whose coding sequences were amplified from cDNA. Due to alternative splicing, two variants of Gt LPMO9A seem to be produced, a single domain variant, Gt LPMO9A-1, and a longer variant, Gt LPMO9A-2, which contains a C-terminal domain comprising approximately 55 residues without a predicted function. We have overexpressed the phylogenetically distinct Gt LPMO9A-2 in Pichia pastoris and investigated its properties. Standard analyses, using HPAEC-PAD and MS, showed that Gt LPMO9A-2 is active on cellulose, carboxymethylcellulose and xyloglucan. Importantly, compared to other known xyloglucan-active LPMOs, Gt LPMO9A-2 has broad specificity, cleaving at any position along the β-glucan backbone of xyloglucan, regardless of substitutions. Using dynamic viscosity measurements to compare the hemicellulolytic action of Gt LPMO9A-2 to that of a well-characterized hemicellulolytic LPMO, Nc LPMO9C from Neurospora crassa , revealed that Gt LPMO9A-2 is more efficient in depolymerizing xyloglucan. These measurments also revealed minor activity on glucomannan that could not be detected by the analysis of soluble products by HPAEC-PAD and MS and that was lower than the activity of Nc LPMO9C. Experiments with co-polymeric substrates showed an inhibitory effect of hemicellulose-coating on cellulolytic LPMO activity and did not reveal additional activities of Gt LPMO9A-2. These results provide insight into the LPMO-potential of G. trabeum and provide a novel sensitive method, measurement of dynamic viscosity, for monitoring LPMO activity. Importance Currently, there are only a few methods available to analyze end-products of lytic polysaccharide monooxygenase (LPMO) activity, the most common ones being liquid chromatography and mass spectrometry. Here we present an alternative and sensitive method based on measurement of dynamic viscosity, for real-time continuous monitoring of LPMO activity in the presence of water-soluble hemicelluloses such as xyloglucan. We have used both this novel and existing analytical methods to characterize a xyloglucan-active LPMO from a brown rot fungus. This enzyme, Gt LPMO9A-2, differs from previously characterized LPMOs, in having broad substrate specificity, enabling almost random cleavage of the xyloglucan backbone. Gt LPMO9A-2 acts preferentially on free xyloglucan, suggesting a preference for xyloglucan chains that tether cellulose fibres together. The xyloglucan-degrading potential of Gt LPMO9A-2 suggests a role in decreasing Wood Strength at the initial stage of brown-rot, through degradation of the primary cell wall.
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a lytic polysaccharide monooxygenase with broad xyloglucan specificity from the brown rot fungus gloeophyllum trabeum and its action on cellulose xyloglucan complexes
Applied and Environmental Microbiology, 2016Co-Authors: Yuka Kojima, Barry Goodell, Kiyohiko Igarashi, Jody Jellison, Gry Alfredsen, Dejan Petrovic, Aniko Varnai, Takuya Ishida, Naoki Sunagawa, Bjorge WesterengAbstract:ABSTRACT Fungi secrete a set of glycoside hydrolases and lytic polysaccharide monooxygenases (LPMOs) to degrade plant polysaccharides. Brown-rot fungi, such as Gloeophyllum trabeum, tend to have few LPMOs, and information on these enzymes is scarce. The genome of G. trabeum encodes four auxiliary activity 9 (AA9) LPMOs (GtLPMO9s), whose coding sequences were amplified from cDNA. Due to alternative splicing, two variants of GtLPMO9A seem to be produced, a single-domain variant, GtLPMO9A-1, and a longer variant, GtLPMO9A-2, which contains a C-terminal domain comprising approximately 55 residues without a predicted function. We have overexpressed the phylogenetically distinct GtLPMO9A-2 in Pichia pastoris and investigated its properties. Standard analyses using high-performance anion-exchange chromatography–pulsed amperometric detection (HPAEC-PAD) and mass spectrometry (MS) showed that GtLPMO9A-2 is active on cellulose, carboxymethyl cellulose, and xyloglucan. Importantly, compared to other known xyloglucan-active LPMOs, GtLPMO9A-2 has broad specificity, cleaving at any position along the β-glucan backbone of xyloglucan, regardless of substitutions. Using dynamic viscosity measurements to compare the hemicellulolytic action of GtLPMO9A-2 to that of a well-characterized hemicellulolytic LPMO, NcLPMO9C from Neurospora crassa revealed that GtLPMO9A-2 is more efficient in depolymerizing xyloglucan. These measurements also revealed minor activity on glucomannan that could not be detected by the analysis of soluble products by HPAEC-PAD and MS and that was lower than the activity of NcLPMO9C. Experiments with copolymeric substrates showed an inhibitory effect of hemicellulose coating on cellulolytic LPMO activity and did not reveal additional activities of GtLPMO9A-2. These results provide insight into the LPMO potential of G. trabeum and provide a novel sensitive method, a measurement of dynamic viscosity, for monitoring LPMO activity. IMPORTANCE Currently, there are only a few methods available to analyze end products of lytic polysaccharide monooxygenase (LPMO) activity, the most common ones being liquid chromatography and mass spectrometry. Here, we present an alternative and sensitive method based on measurement of dynamic viscosity for real-time continuous monitoring of LPMO activity in the presence of water-soluble hemicelluloses, such as xyloglucan. We have used both these novel and existing analytical methods to characterize a xyloglucan-active LPMO from a brown-rot fungus. This enzyme, GtLPMO9A-2, differs from previously characterized LPMOs in having broad substrate specificity, enabling almost random cleavage of the xyloglucan backbone. GtLPMO9A-2 acts preferentially on free xyloglucan, suggesting a preference for xyloglucan chains that tether cellulose fibers together. The xyloglucan-degrading potential of GtLPMO9A-2 suggests a role in decreasing Wood Strength at the initial stage of brown rot through degradation of the primary cell wall.
M. J. Fuhr - One of the best experts on this subject based on the ideXlab platform.
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Automated quantification of the impact of the Wood-decay fungus Physisporinus vitreus on the cell wall structure of Norway spruce by tomographic microscopy
Wood Science and Technology, 2011Co-Authors: M. J. Fuhr, C. Stührk, B. Münch, Francis W. M. R. Schwarze, Mark SchubertAbstract:The visualization and the quantification of microscopic decay patterns are important for the study of the impact of Wood-decay fungi in general, as well as for Wood-decay fungi and microorganisms with possible applications in biotech- nology. In the present work, a method was developed for the automated localization and quantification of microscopic cell wall elements (CWE) of Norway spruce Wood such as bordered pits, intrinsic defects, hyphae or alterations induced by white-rot fungus Physisporinus vitreus using high-resolution X-ray computed tomographic microscopy. In addition to classical destructive Wood anatomical methods such as light or laser scanning microscopy, this method allows for the first time to compute the properties (e.g., area, orientation and size distribution) of CWE of the tracheids in a sample. This is essential for modeling the influence of microscopic CWE on macroscopic properties such as Wood Strength and permeability.
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Automated Quantification of the Impact of the Wood-decay fungus Physisporinus vitreus on the Cell Wall Structure of Norway spruce by Tomographic Microscopy
arXiv: Quantitative Methods, 2011Co-Authors: M. J. Fuhr, C. Stührk, B. Münch, Francis W. M. R. Schwarze, Mark SchubertAbstract:Wood-decay fungi decompose their substrate by extracellular, degradative enzymes and play an important role in natural ecosystems by recycling carbon and minerals fixed in plants. Thereby, they cause significant damage to the Wood structure and limit the use of Wood as building material. Besides their role as biodeteriorators Wood-decay fungi can be used for biotechnological purposes, e.g. the white-rot fungus Physisporinus vitreus for improving the uptake of preservatives and Wood-modification substances of refractory Wood. Therefore, the visualization and the quantification of microscopic decay patterns are important for the study of the impact of Wood-decay fungi in general, as well as for Wood-decay fungi and microorganisms with possible applications in biotechnology. In the present work, we developed a method for the automated localization and quantification of microscopic cell wall elements (CWE) of Norway spruce Wood such as bordered pits, intrinsic defects, hyphae or alterations induced by P. vitreus using high resolution X-ray computed tomographic microscopy. In addition to classical destructive Wood anatomical methods such as light or laser scanning microscopy, our method allows for the first time to compute the properties (e.g. area, orientation and size-distribution) of CWE of the tracheids in a sample. This is essential for modeling the influence of microscopic CWE to macroscopic properties such as Wood Strength and permeability.
