| Trichoderma reesei | |
|---|---|
| Scientific classification | |
| Kingdom: | Fungi |
| Division: | Ascomycota |
| Subdivision: | Pezizomycotina |
| Class: | Sordariomycetes |
| Order: | Hypocreales |
| Family: | Hypocreaceae |
| Genus: | Trichoderma |
| Species: | T. reesei |
| Binomial name | |
| Trichoderma reesei |
|
Trichoderma reesei is a mesophilic and filamentous fungus. It is an anamorph of the fungus Hypocrea jecorina. T. reesei has the capacity to secrete large amounts of cellulolytic enzymes (cellulases and hemicellulases). Microbial cellulases have industrial application in the conversion of cellulose, a major component of plant biomass, into glucose.[1]
Recent advances in the biochemistry of cellulase enzymology, the mechanism of cellulose hydrolysis (cellulolysis), strain improvement, molecular cloning and process engineering are bringing T. reesei cellulases closer to being a commercially viable route to cellulose hydrolysis.[2] Several industrially useful strains have been developed and characterised, e.g. Rut-C30[3], RL-P37 and MCG-80. The genome of this organism was released in 2008.[4] This organism also has a mating type dependent characterised sexual cycle.[5]
This article incorporates public domain material from websites or documents of the United States Department of Energy.