Time-Course Carbohydrate-Active Enzyme Production of Neofusicoccum Parvum and its Enzymatic Hydrolysis Performance on Wheat Straw and Grapevine Canes

The continuing search for more efficient, low-cost enzymes for biomass hydrolysis is a crucial issue in plant biorefining. Due to their ability to secrete a broad set of plant cell-wall degrading enzymes, phytopathogenic wood-colonizing fungi depict a promising source of lignocellulolytic enzymes. However, the use of phytopathogenic fungal enzymes in plant biorefining remains poorly explored. Here, we assessed the capacity of lignocellulolytic enzymes produced by the grapevine trunk pathogen Neofusicoccum parvum in the breakdown of non-pretreated wheat straw (WS) and grapevine canes (GP) after growth on these two substrates. First, we determined the peak activity time of lignocellulases during 42 days of cultivation. In addition, transcriptomics at late growth stages was performed. Second, we evaluated the performance of secreted enzymes from the WS (WS-S) and GP (GP-S) cultures in hydrolyzing both lignocellulose substrates. Most of the enzymes reached the maximum activity between 14 and 28 days post-inoculation. Enzyme assays combined with transcriptomics revealed a dynamic enzyme utilization, where (hemi-)cellulases were predominantly produced at early growth stages. Afterward, enzymes acting on more recalcitrant polymers became more prominent. The WS-S released more xylose, arabinose, and total sugars from WS (3.3, 7.4, and 4.9