Application of the white-rot fungus Trametes sp. (C3) laccase in the removal of acetaminophen from aqueous solutions

Abstract

Effluents containing drugs originating from hospitals, veterinary clinics, residences, and pharmaceutical industries, pass through the sewage treatment system and are discharged into the aquatic environment, causing water contamination. The methods used in sewage treatment are ineffective for these types of micropollutants. Laccase, an enzyme produced by white-rot fungi, has been used to successfully remove drugs in waters. The objective of this work was to evaluate the removal of acetaminophen from aqueous solutions by the fungus Trametes sp. (C3). Ethanol showed efficiency in inducing the production of the laccase enzyme and in vitro removal tests the amount of drug decreased by 76 %. The use of the 1-hydroxybenzotriazole (HBT) as mediator caused a lower removal rate than the assay without its presence, indicating that it acted as an inhibitor of degradation. In in vivo tests, there was a 79 % removal rate of acetaminophen on the fourth day of culture. Toxicity assays showed that after the action of the laccase there was toxicity to the larval stage of Artemia salina.