Francis W. M. R. Schwarze

Genome sequence of the model mushroom Schizophyllum commune

Much remains to be learned about the biology of mushroom-forming fungi, which are an important source of food, secondary metabolites and industrial enzymes. The wood-degrading fungus Schizophyllum commune is both a genetically tractable model for studying mushroom development and a likely source of enzymes capable of efficient degradation of lignocellulosic biomass. Comparative analyses of its 38.5-megabase genome, which encodes 13,210 predicted genes, reveal the speciess unique wood-degrading machinery. One-third of the 471 genes predicted to encode transcription factors are differentially expressed during sexual development of S. commune. Whereas inactivation of one of these, fst4, prevented mushroom formation, inactivation of another, fst3, resulted in more, albeit smaller, mushrooms than in the wild-type fungus. Antisense transcripts may also have a role in the formation of fruiting bodies. Better insight into the mechanisms underlying mushroom formation should affect commercial production of mushrooms and their industrial use for producing enzymes and pharmaceuticals.

Permeability changes in heartwood of Picea abies and Abies alba induced by incubation with Physisporinus vitreus

Abstract The present study shows that isolates of P. vitreus have an extraordinary capacity to induce substantial permeability changes in heartwood of P. abies without causing significant losses in impact bending strength. The degradation of pit membranes by P. vitreus is an important aspect that could also have significant benefits in wood protection processes. Further studies are currently in progress with the objective of optimising the uniformity of wood colonisation and duration of incubation, so as to improve the permeability of water-borne wood preservatives or hydrophobic substances applied by brushing, dipping and impregnation.

Resistance of thermo-hygro-mechanically densified wood to colonisation and degradation by brown-rot fungi

Abstract Colonisation and wood degradation by three brown-rot fungi, Coniophora puteana, Gloeophyllum trabeum and Poria placenta, were studied in wood of Norway spruce (Picea abies) subjected to three different treatments: hygro-thermal (TH) (160 and 180°C), mechanical densification and thermo-hygro-mechanical (THM) treatment including densification and post-treatment under saturated steam conditions at different temperatures (140, 160 and 180°C). The weight loss induced by all three fungi was lowest in THM-densified wood post-treated at 180°C. Highest weight losses were recorded for controls and TH-treated wood. Fungal colonisation varied in its intensity, depending on the treatment applied to the wood. Hyphal growth in controls and TH-treated wood was abundant, whereas in densified and THM-densified wood it was sparse and confined predominantly to the cell lumina of earlywood tracheids. Also, penetration of large-diameter hyphae and associated degradation in THM-densified wood was impeded by occlusion of the lumina, associated with irreversible compression (loss in shape memory). In contrast to C. puteana and P. placenta, which showed typical brown-rot behaviour, G. trabeum frequently showed hyphal tunnelling within the secondary walls of tracheids and xylem ray parenchyma of controls and thermally treated wood. Such growth was never observed in THM-densified wood post-treated at 180°C.

Modelling the hyphal growth of the wood-decay fungus Physisporinus vitreus.

The white-rot fungus, Physisporinus vitreus, degrades the membranes of bordered pits in tracheids and consequently increases the permeability of wood, which is a process that can be used by the wood industry to improve the uptake of wood preservatives and environmentally benign wood modification substances to enhance the use and sustainability of native conifer wood species. To understand and apply this process requires an understanding of how a complex system (fungus-wood) interacts under defined conditions. We present a three-dimensional fungal growth model (FGM) of the hyphal growth of P. vitreus in the heartwood of Norway spruce. The model considers hyphae and nutrients as discrete structures and links the microscopic interactions between fungus and wood (e.g. degradation rate and degree of opening of pits) with macroscopic system properties, such penetration depth of the fungus, biomass, and distribution of destroyed pits in early- and latewood. Simulations were compared with experimental data. The growth of P. vitreus is characterized by a stepwise capture of the substrate and the effect of this on wood according to different model parameters is discussed.

Physisporinus vitreus: a versatile white rot fungus for engineering value-added wood products

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 7xa0years, 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.

Automated quantification of the impact of the wood-decay fungus Physisporinus vitreus on the cell wall structure of Norway spruce by tomographic microscopy

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, 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.

Modelling the effect of environmental factors on the hyphal growth of the basidiomycete Physisporinus vitreus

The present work investigated the effects of environmental factors on the growth of fungal colonies of the white‐rot basidiomycetes Physisporinus vitreus using a lattice‐free discrete modeling approach called the fungal growth model (FGM), in which hyphae and nutrients are considered as discrete structures. A discrete modeling approach enables the underlying mechanistic rule concerning the basic architecture and dynamics of fungal networks to be studied on the scale of a single colony. By comparing simulations of the FGM with laboratory experiments of fungal colonies growing on malt extract agar we show that the combined effects of water activity, temperature and pH on the radial growth rate of fungal mycelia on the macroscopic scale may be explained by a power law for the costs of hyphal maintenance and expansion on the microscopic scale. Information about the response of the fungal mycelium at the micro‐ scopic level to environmental conditions is essential for simulating its behavior in complex structure substrates such as wood, where the effect of the fungus on the wood (i.e. the degradation of the cell wall) changes the local environmental condition (e.g. the permeability of the substrate and therefore the water activity in a colonized wood cell lumen). Using a combination of diffusion and moisture processes with the FGM may increase our understanding of the colonization strategy of P. vitreus and help to optimize its growth behavior for biotechnological applications such as bioincising. (© 2012 WILEY‐VCH Verlag GmbH & Co. KGaA, Weinheim)

Synchrotron X-ray micro-tomography imaging and analysis of wood degraded by Physisporinus vitreus and Xylaria longipes.

Incubation of Norway spruce with Physisporinus vitreus and sycamore with Xylaria longipes results in reduction in density of these wood species that are traditionally used for the top and bottom plate of a violin, which follows by enhanced acoustic properties. We used Synchrotron X-ray micro-tomography, to study the three-dimensional structure of wood at the micro-scale level and the alterations of the density distribution after incubation with two white-rot fungi. Micro-tomography data from wood treated at different incubation periods are analyzed and compared with untreated (control) specimens to determine the wood density map and changes at the cell-wall level. Differences between the density of early- and latewood, xylem ray and around bordered pits in both Norway spruce and sycamore are studied. Three-dimensional hyphal networks of the P.vitreus and Xylaria longipes hyphae are visualized inside the cell lumina and their significance on the density of the early- and latewood cells after different incubation periods are discussed. The study illustrates the utility of X-ray micro-tomography for both qualitative and quantitative studies of a wide variety of biological systems and due to its high sensitivity, small structural changes can be quantified.

Agrobacterium-mediated transformation of the white-rot fungus Physisporinus vitreus

The biotechnologically important white-rot fungus Physisporinus vitreus was co-cultivated with Agrobacterium tumefaciens AGL-1 carrying plasmids with nourseothricin resistance as the selectable marker gene and red fluorescence protein as a visual marker. Mitotically stable transformed isolates were obtained showing red fluorescence protein activity.

Influence of moisture on the vibro-mechanical properties of bio-engineered wood

In this study, changes in the vibro-mechanical properties of fungi-treated wood, during sorption and desorption at different humidity levels, were investigated. Norway spruce resonance wood (with uniform narrow annual rings and high tonal quality for musical instrument craftsmanship) was incubated with Physisporinus vitreus for 36xa0weeks. Stiffness, internal friction, and tonal performance indices of control (untreated) and fungi-treated wood were compared after exposure to a stepwise variation of relative humidity. It was demonstrated that fungal treatment increased the internal friction and decreased the specific modulus of elasticity, during reduction of wood density. Internal friction of both control and fungi-treated wood significantly increased during dynamic sorption, especially during early stages (hours) of each humidity change step. Both specific modulus of elasticity and internal friction showed a hysteretic behavior during humidity variation cycles. Hysteresis was smaller in fungi-treated wood. Also, tonal performance indices were improved after fungal treatment and showed a reduced variation at different relative humidity conditions. Dynamic vapor sorption tests and FT-IR microscopy studies revealed changes in hygroscopicity and the supramolecular structure of wood, which may explain the observed vibrational behavior. Less dependency of wood vibrational properties to the variation of the ambient humidity is important for the acoustic performance of string instruments.