Improvement of the basidiomycete Coprinus sp.

Coprinus sp. C-1 (obtained from uranium mines) was subjected to improvement procedures with the aim of preparing a strain that could degrade cellulose in the straw substrate more rapidly and effectively. The original C-1 strain was highly resistant to UV and X radiation but it was rather sensitive to tris(2-chloroethyl)amine, the effect of which increased when applying simultaneously compounds reacting with mercapto groups of some enzymes. The mutants obtained synthesized during the same interval by up to 94% more N compounds than the original strain the rate of cellulose degradation increasing by about 40%. In certain mutants the content of some essential amino acids simultaneously increased by up to 110%.