Elucidation of a novel fungal biotransformation pathway of ibuprofen by Phanerochaete sordida YK-624 under non-ligninolytic conditions.

Ibuprofen, a widely used non-steroidal anti-inflammatory drug (NSAID), has been detected in the environment and is known to contaminate waterbodies. Here, we investigated the biotransformation of ibuprofen using the hyper-lignin-degrading fungus Phanerochaete sordida YK-624. This fungus exhibited excellent transformation capacity, removing 75% of ibuprofen within 5 h of incubation at a final concentration of 100 μM. Three novel metabolites of this transformation were isolated, and their structures were determined by nuclear magnetic resonance and high-resolution electrospray ionization mass spectrometry. Furthermore, experiments involving inhibition of cytochrome P450 indicated that it may play important roles in the process of ibuprofen transformation. To the best of our knowledge, this report is the first to demonstrate hydroxylation of the aromatic ring during the metabolism of ibuprofen by fungi. Additionally, a novel metabolic pathway for the transformation of ibuprofen by P. sordida YK-624 was proposed. These findings contribute to a deeper understanding of fungal-mediated pharmaceutical biotransformation and underscore the potential of white-rot fungi for environmental remediation of pharmaceutical pollutants.