Transcriptional response of lignin‐degrading enzymes to 17α‐ethinyloestradiol in two white rots

Summary Fungal, ligninolytic enzymes have attracted a great attention for their bioremediation capabilities. A deficient knowledge of regulation of enzyme production, however, hinders the use of ligninolytic fungi in bioremediation applications. In this work, a transcriptional analyses of laccase and manganese peroxidase ( MnP ) production by two white rots was combined with determination of pI of the enzymes and the evaluation of 17α‐ethinyloestradiol ( EE 2) degradation to study regulation mechanisms used by fungi during EE 2 degradation. In the cultures of T rametes versicolor the addition of EE 2 caused an increase in laccase activity with a maximum of 34.2 ± 6.7  U g −1 of dry mycelia that was observed after 2 days of cultivation. It corresponded to a 4.9 times higher transcription levels of a laccase‐encoding gene ( lacB ) that were detected in the cultures at the same time. Simultaneously, pI values of the fungal laccases were altered in response to the EE 2 treatment. Like T . versicolor , I rpex lacteus was also able to remove 10 mg l −1 EE 2 within 3 days of cultivation. While an increase to I . lacteus   MnP activity and MnP gene transcription levels was observed at the later phase of the cultivation. It suggests another metabolic role of MnP but EE 2 degradation.