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Lignin: Chemical structure, biodegradation, and practical application (a review)

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Abstract

The review describes the natural biopolymer lignin, which is second in plant biomass abundance. It is evident now that lignin is considerably undervalued and insufficiently studied in the applied area. The review focuses on the history of the lignin discovery, methods for its extraction from plant objects, its biodegradation by fungi, the enzymes degrading lignin, and the prospects of its application in current biotechnology.

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Authors and Affiliations

  1. Winogradsky Institute of Microbiology, Russian Academy of Sciences, Moscow, 119071, Russia

    E. P. Feofilova & I. S. Mysyakina

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  1. E. P. Feofilova
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  2. I. S. Mysyakina
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Correspondence to E. P. Feofilova.

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Original Russian Text © E.P. Feofilova, I.S. Mysyakina, 2016, published in Prikladnaya Biokhimiya i Mikrobiologiya, 2016, Vol. 52, No. 6, pp. 559–569.

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Feofilova, E.P., Mysyakina, I.S. Lignin: Chemical structure, biodegradation, and practical application (a review). Appl Biochem Microbiol 52, 573–581 (2016). https://doi.org/10.1134/S0003683816060053

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