Harnessing the hydrolytic potential of phytopathogenic fungus Phoma exigua ITCC 2049 for saccharification of lignocellulosic biomass

[Display omitted] •Phytopathogenic fungus Phoma exigua a new source for hydrolytic enzyme production.•Optimization of production parameters by Taguchi method improved enzyme yield.•Phoma secretome supplemented with β-glucosidase efficiently hydrolyzed the biomass. Phytopathogenic fungi develop unique systems for fast invasion by producing hydrolases, which may be explored as a source of hydrolytic enzymes for biofuel research. The present work deals with evaluation of a potato pathogen Phoma exigua ITCC 2049 for its potential to produce cellulase and xylanase enzyme. Taguchi methodology was applied to reveal the influence and contribution of five important factors (carbon source, organic and inorganic nitrogen source, surfactant, and pH) on hydrolytic enzyme production by Phoma. Cultivation of fungus under optimized condition produced endoglucanase (37.00IU/ml), FPase (1.13IU/ml), β-glucosidase (2.67IU/ml) and xylanase (24.92IU/ml) within 8days of submerged fermentation. Saccharification of biopretreated Parthenium and paddy straw with cocktail of Phoma secretome supplemented with commercial β-glucosidase resulted in the significantly higher reducing sugar yield (651.04–698.11mg/gds). This study proves the potential of Phoma as an alternative source of enzymes for biomass saccharification.