Feng Xu

TL;DR: It is demonstrated that copper is needed for GH61 maximal activity and that the formation of cellodextrin and oxidized cellodesxtrin products by GH61 is enhanced in the presence of small molecule redox-active cofactors such as ascorbate and gallate.

TL;DR: It is shown that certain GH61 proteins lack measurable hydrolytic activity but in the presence of various divalent metal ions can significantly reduce the total protein loading required to hydrolyze lignocellulosic biomass, and it is concluded that the GH 61 proteins are unlikely to be glycoside hydrolases.

TL;DR: Several fungal laccases have been compared for the oxidation of a nonphenolic lignin dimer, 1-(3,4-dimethoxyphenyl)-2-(2-methOxyphenoxy)propan-1,3-diol (I), and a Phenol red, in the presence of the redox mediators 1-hydroxybenzotriazole (1-HBT) or violuric acid.

TL;DR: It is demonstrated that the binary combination of Thermoascus aurantiacus GH61A (TaGH61A) and Humicola insolens CDH (HiCDH) cleaves cellulose into soluble, oxidized oligosaccharides, which may constitute an important, but overlooked, biological oxidoreductive system that functions in microbial lignocellulose degradation and has applications in industrial biomass utilization.

TL;DR: 3-Hydroxybenzotriazole, violuric acid, andN-hydroxyacetanilide are three N-OH compounds capable of mediating a range of laccase-catalyzed biotransformations, such as paper pulp delignification and degradation of polycyclic hydrocarbons.