The United States Department of Energy (DOE) Joint Genome Institute (JGI) announces today the publication of a high-quality draft genome sequence of the white rot fungus, Phanerochaete chrysosporium. These are the only known microbes capable of efficiently degrading the recalcitrant aromatic plant polymer lignin, one of the most abundant natural materials on earth. White rot fungi such as Phanerochaete chrysosporium play a pivotal role in the carbon cycle--the circulation of carbon from the atmosphere into organisms and back again. They also have demonstrated the ability to remediate explosive contaminants, pesticides and toxic waste with similar chemical structures to lignin. The sequence findings are summarized in the May 2nd on-line edition of the journal Nature Biotechnology.
