M. Adosinda M. Martins

Comparative studies of fungal degradation of single or mixed bioaccessible reactive azo dyes

A screening using several fungi (Phanerochaete chrysosporium, Pleurotus ostreatus, Trametes versicolor and Aureobasidium pullulans) was performed on the degradation of syringol derivatives of azo dyes possessing either carboxylic or sulphonic groups, under optimized conditions previously established by us. T. versicolor showed the best biodegradation performance and its potential was confirmed by the degradation of differently substituted fungal bioaccessible dyes. Enzymatic assays (lignin peroxidase, manganese peroxidase, laccase, proteases and glyoxal oxidase) and GC-MS analysis were performed upon the assay obtained using the most degraded dye. The identification of hydroxylated metabolites allowed us to propose a possible metabolic pathway. Biodegradation assays using mixtures of these bioaccessible dyes were performed to evaluate the possibility of a fungal wastewater treatment for textile industries.

Biodegradation of bioaccessible textile azo dyes by Phanerochaete chrysosporium

Azo dyes are important chemical pollutants of industrial origin. Textile azo dyes with bioaccessible groups for lignin degrading fungi, such as 2-methoxyphenol (guaiacol) and 2,6-dimethoxyphenol (syringol), were synthesised using different aminobenzoic and aminosulphonic acids as diazo components. The inocula of the best biodegradation assays were obtained from a pre-growth medium (PAM), containing one of the synthesised dyes. The results of the dye biodegradation assays were evaluated every 7 days, by the decrease of the absorbance at the maximum wavelength of the dye, by the decrease of the sucrose concentration in the culture medium and by the increase of the biomass during the 28 days of assay. It was observed that the extent of dye biodegradation depended on the sucrose concentration, on the degraded dye structure and, on the dye present in the PAM medium.

Relationship of chemical structures of textile dyes on the pre-adaptation medium and the potentialities of their biodegradation by Phanerochaete chrysosporium.

Azo dye derivatives of azobenzene constitute the largest group of dyes used in the textile industry and possess recalcitrant chemical groups, such as those of azo and sulphonic acid. Some microorganisms are able to degrade these aromatic compounds. In the present work, decolourisation of culture media containing azo dyes by the ligninolytic fungus Phanerochaete chrysosporium was achieved under nitrogen-limited conditions. The dyes used in the study are derivatives of meta- or para-aminosulphonic or aminobenzoic acids and include in their structures groups such as guaiacol or syringol, which are bioaccessible to the lignin degrading fungus P. chrysosporium. The aim of this study was to pre-adapt the microorganism to the structure of the dyes and to establish the relationships of the chemical structure of the dye present in the pre-adaptation medium with the chemical structure of the dye to be degraded. The azo dye used in the pre-adaptation medium that gave the best overall decolourisation performance was a meta-aminosulphonic acid and guaiacol derivative. The azo dye derivative of a meta-aminobenzoic acid and syringol showed a better performance in the decolourisation assays. Preliminary GC-MS studies indicated the formation of a nitroso substituted catechol metabolite, a precursor of aromatic ring cleavage, which was confirmed to occur by an enzymatic assay. The presence of this type of metabolite allows the establishment of a possible metabolic pathway towards mineralisation.