Carotene-degrading activities from Bjerkandera adusta possess an application in detergent industries.

Four extracellular enzymes, a versatile peroxidase, a manganese peroxidase, a dye-decolorizing peroxidase and a lignin peroxidase were discovered in liquid cultures of the basidiomycete Bjerkandera adusta. All of them cleaved β-carotene effectively. Expression was enhanced in the presence of β-carotene or Coomassie Brilliant Blue and peaked after 7-9 days. The monomeric proteins were purified by ion exchange and size exclusion chromatography and exhibited molecular masses of 41, 43, 51 and 43 kDa, respectively. The coding sequences showed homologies from 61 to 89 % to peroxidases from other basidiomycetes. The novel enzymes retained strong activity even in the absence of hydrogen peroxide and at alkaline pH. De-staining of fabrics using detergent-tolerant enzymes may help to save the most important bio-resources, energy and water, in washing processes and led to green processes in textile cleaning.