Brown-rot fungi such as Postia placenta are common inhabitants of forest ecosystems and brown rot fungi are also largely responsible for the destructive decay of wooden structures. The aim of this study was to compare two commonly used strains of Postia placenta – MAD-698-R and FPRL 280. Scots pine sapwood samples were exposed for two and eight weeks to both fungal strains. The following was investigated: mass loss, fungal gDNA content and gene expression. A significant difference was found in mass loss after eight weeks between the P. placenta strains MAD-698-R and FPRL 280. MAD-698-R gave higher mass loss than FPRL 280. However, MAD-698-R seems to have a slightly slower growth rate than FPRL 280, reflected in lower gDNA content after two weeks. After eight weeks of exposure the gDNA content dropped and no significant difference was found between MAD-698-R and FPRL 280. We observed differences in mass loss, colonization-rate and gene expression between the two Postia strains. Results suggest significant differences in the regulation of key lignocellulose degrading enzymes between MAD-698-R and FPRL 280.

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