PRODUCTION OF LACCASE BY NEWLY ISOLATED MARASMIUS SP. BBKAV79 IN SOLID STATE FERMENTATION AND ITS ANTIPROLIFERATIVE ACTIVITY

The aim of the present study was to investigate the production of laccase by Marasmius sp. BBKAV79 in Solid State Fermentation (SSF) and its antiproliferative activity. Experiments were also conducted to determine the variables that could affect activity of laccase. In particular, the effects of the initial moisture content, pH, temperature, and inoculum volume, incubation period in addition to carbon and nitrogen sources were evaluated. Rice bran was found to be the best supported lignocellulosic substrate for extracellular laccase production under SSF. Highest activity of laccase was achieved at pH 6.0 and temperature at 40°C. Inoculum size and incubation period for laccase production at 2000µl culture broth and 10 days respectively. The presence of starch and ammonium sulphate in the growth medium was found to be favourable for the production of the laccase. Such a high activity was obtained without any addition of inducers. Thus, the indigenous isolate is found to be a potential producer of laccase using SSF and can be exploited for further biotechnological applications. The process also promises economical utilization and value addition of agro-residues and it potently suppressed the proliferation of tumor cell lines KB, MCF7 and VERO with an IC50 value of 88.61 µl, 49.5 µl, and ~67603 µl respectively, signifying that it is an anticancer protein.