Efficient biodegradation of straw and persistent organic pollutants by a novel strategy using recombinant Trichoderma reesei

Efficient biodegradation of lignocellulosic biomass needs a battery of enzymes targeting cellulose, hemicellulose, and lignin. In this study, recombinant Trichoderma reesei ZJ-09 with Pycnoporus sanguineus laccase gene was used to degrade rice straw by in situ production of laccase, xylanase, and cellulases under solid-state fermentation (SSF). Effects of parameters on key enzymes (cellulase, xylanase, and laccase) in biodegradation during SSF were investigated. Under the optimized SSF conditions, the FPA, xylanase activity, and laccase activity reached 110.47 FPU/g, 5787.59 IU/g, and 24.45 IU/g, respectively, on day 12. The obtained recombinant T. reesei SSF system achieved efficient degradation of rice straw with the final mass loss up to 51.16% which was 1.4-fold higher than the host strain. Further, bioconversion of rice straw into a novel laccase-enriched koji for persistent organic pollutants bioremediation (LKPB) was conducted by the optimized SSF system. LKPB was found to degrade persistent organic pollutants (POPs) effectively without the addition of mediators. 4-h removal rates of three POPs mediated by LKPB (87.21% for 2,4,5-trichlorophenol, 92.45% for nonylphenol, and 90.73% for oxytetracycline) were comparable to those achieved by laccase-co-mediator system. The newly established recombinant T. reesei SSF system could be potential to effectively degrade lignocellulosic wastes as well as organic pollutants. Graphical abstract