Biotechnological production of colorants.

The color of food and drinks is important, as it is associated with freshness and taste. Despite that natural colorants are more expensive to produce, less stable to heat and light, and less consistent in color range, natural colorants have been gaining market share in recent years. The background is that artificial colorants are often associated with negative health aspects.

Novel peroxidases of Marasmius scorodonius degrade beta-carotene.

Two extracellular enzymes (MsP1 and MsP2) capable of efficient beta-carotene degradation were purified from culture supernatants of the basidiomycete Marasmius scorodonius (garlic mushroom). Under native conditions, the enzymes exhibited molecular masses of approximately 150 and approximately 120 kDa, respectively. SDS-PAGE and mass spectrometric data suggested a composition of two identical subunits for both enzymes.