Expressão do complexo celulolítico em Penicillium echinulatum

Abstract

The st:rain of Penicillium echinulatum 9A02Sl is a filamentous fungus that presents a cellulolytic system with potential application in processes of degradation of lignocellulosic materiais for ethanol production. The growing interest in fhel and the abundance of lignocellulosic materiais that can be used as raw material has inc:reased the interest in cellulases. In this study, the strain P echinulatum 9A02Sl was grown in submerged cultivation in agitated flasks in presence of different carbon sources. In addition to growth, it was evaluated the production of cellula.ses, Pglucosidases and xylanases, and enzyme expres:sion in activity polyacrylamide gels in order to detemlinate the molecular ma.ss. The mycelial growth decreased pH o f the medium and this fact was not related to enzyme production. The cellulose was an inducer for all the enzymes ana.lyzed. The carboximetilcellulose was found to be an effi[cient carbon source for production o f filter paper a.ctivity, endogluca.nases and xylanases, despite the low mycelial growth. Cellobiose, glycerol and glucose stimulated the production of P-glucosidases. An endoglucanase band of 74 kDa was detected in zymograms o f all enzyme broths obtained in the presence o f different carbon sources, suggesting it is a constitutive enzyme. The expression of P-glucosidase occuned at the end of cultivation (5 and 6 days), and in all medium that was evaluated was observed a 250 kDa band, indica.ting that this is a. constitutive enzyme. The expression of other bands with different molecular mass suggest that different genes, multimeric fonns or post-translational modifications are involved in the expression ofthese enzymes in P echinulatum.