Modified wood materials have improved resistance against wood decaying fungi. In contrast to traditional treatments, where the durability is achieved from the toxicity of the added chemicals, very little is known about the mode of action of the nontoxic wood modifications and even less about the fungal response to modified wood. The aim of this study was to investigate the reaction of the brown rot fungi Postia placenta in terms of gene expression of selected genes upon the encounter of acetylated, DMDHEU-treated and thermally modified wood. Using quantitative real-time PCR, we show that the investigated P. placenta genes involved in oxidative degradation are expressed at higher levels in modified wood than in untreated wood. We conclude that the response of P. placenta upon the encounter of modified wood is to up-regulate the expression of the oxidative degradation machinery. In addition, our results support the theory that the decay resistance of the herein studied modified woods is due to inhibition of fungal molecules needed for oxidative degradation of wood polymers to penetrate the wood cell wall.
Keywords: Acetylated wood, DMDHEU-treated wood, brown rot fungi, quantitative real-time PCR, thermally modified wood
Authors
Ringman R.
Institute of Sweden, Borås, Sweden
Pilgård A.
Institute of Sweden, Borås, Sweden
Richter K.
Technische Univerität München, Holzforschung München, München, Germany
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