Generation and Evaluation of High β-Glucan Producing Mutant Strains of Sparassis crispa

A chemical mutagenesis technique was employed for development of mutant strains of Sparassis crispa targeting the shortened cultivation time and the high β-glucan content. The homogenized mycelial fragments of S. crispa IUM4010 strain were treated with 0.2 vol% methyl methanesulfonate, an alkylating agent, yielding 199 mutant strains. Subsequent screening in terms of growth and β-glucan content yielded two mutant strains, B4 and S7. Both mutants exhibited a significant increase in β-glucan productivity by producing 0.254 and 0.236 mg soluble β-glucan/mg dry cell weight for the B4 and S7 strains, respectively, whereas the wild type strain produced 0.102 mg soluble β-glucan/mg dry cell weight. The results demonstrate the usefulness of chemical mutagenesis for generation of mutant mushroom strains.