Water-soluble products from the degradation of aspen lignin by Phanerochaete chrysosporium

When Phanerochaete chrysosporium degrades [14C] lignin-labelled aspen wood in static liquid culture, it releases almost as much 14C in water-soluble form as in 14CO2. Water-soluble ultraviolet-absorbing materials also accumulate in cultures that are degrading lignin. The water-soluble radioactive materials appear to be intermediates in lignin degradation, because they can be further metabolized to CO2 and because the soluble materials labelled during [14C] lignin degradation are distinct from the materials labelled during [14C] glucose metabolism. These lignin degradation products can be fractionated by gel chromatography and are mostly acidic.