Fungal diversity in Antarctic lignocellulosic substrates and their production of enzymes and lipids with potential industrial applications

Teixeira, Elisa A.A.; de Souza, Láuren M.D.; de Carvalho, Camila R.; Rosa, Carlos A.; Convey, Peter ORCID: https://orcid.org/0000-0001-8497-9903; Rosa, Luiz H.. 2025 Fungal diversity in Antarctic lignocellulosic substrates and their production of enzymes and lipids with potential industrial applications. Blue Biotechnology, 2 (11). 10.1186/s44315-025-00035-9

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Abstract/Summary

Antarctica is characterized by extreme conditions including low temperatures, strong winds, desiccation, high UV radiation, high salinity, freeze-thaw cycles and pH variations. As a result, the resident diversity is dominated by extremophilic microorganisms with adaptations that enable their survival and attract significant biotechnological interest. The present study aimed to recover culturable fungi from different lignocellulosic substrates obtained on Deception Island, maritime Antarctica, and evaluate their ability to produce enzymes and lipids of interest. A total of 47 fungal isolates were recovered from different substrates, representing 16 genera and 23 taxa of the phyla Ascomycota and Basidiomycota. The most abundant genus was Coniochaeta, followed by Cadophora, Pseudogymnoascus, Mrakia and Leucosporidium. The fungal community detected in this study displayed high diversity, richness, and dominance indices. The highest number of fungi produced amylase degradation halos, followed by inulinase and cellulase. However, inulinase was produced the highest number of good-producing fungi. The two strains isolated of the yeast, Solicoccozyma terricola, were able to produce intracellular lipid at low temperatures. Our data indicates the presence of a high diversity and dominance of decomposer taxa. Some of these fungi may have been introduced in wood originally imported for the construction of whaling station or research station buildings, or arrived on Deception Island in different ways. The wood substrates may also have served as bait for the resident mycobiota. The spectrum of enzymatic activity of the cultured fungi corroborates previous studies, confirming the importance of these enzymes for microorganism survival in Antarctica’s habitats. The enzymes produced may have biotechnological potential as more sustainable alternatives in industrial processes involving enzymes active at low temperatures. The oleaginous yeast, S. terricola, demonstrated growth across a wide temperature range, which may favor its presence in Antarctica’s cold but also variable temperature soils. This species also displays biotechnological potential as a potential lipid source, for instance for use as biofuel feedstock.

Item Type:	Publication - Article
Digital Object Identifier (DOI):	10.1186/s44315-025-00035-9
ISSN:	2948-2364
Additional Keywords:	Antarctica, bioprospecting, biotechnology, extremophiles
Date made live:	14 Jul 2025 09:03 +0 (UTC)
URI:	https://nora.nerc.ac.uk/id/eprint/539187

Item Type:

Publication - Article

Digital Object Identifier (DOI):

10.1186/s44315-025-00035-9

ISSN:

2948-2364

Additional Keywords:

Antarctica, bioprospecting, biotechnology, extremophiles

Date made live:

14 Jul 2025 09:03 +0 (UTC)

URI:

https://nora.nerc.ac.uk/id/eprint/539187