Adaptation of Ti(III)-NTA colorimetric assay for use in detecting microbial demethylation of lignin and lignin derived compounds in aerobic conditions

• We adapted an assay for aerobic use to study lignin and lignin derived compounds.
• Lignin did not interfere with the detection of vicinal diols in phenyl methyl ethers.
• The assay was shown effective in determining vicinal diol content of lignin.
• We propose an assay to screen for lignin demethylation with microbial cultures.

An anaerobic colorimetric assay for quantifying microbial demethylation activity was adapted for aerobic use in studying lignin and lignin-derived compounds. Standard curves of 0–500 μM pyrocatechol with and without 0.3% lignin demonstrated the use in either case. This method detects demethylation products up to 500 μM without using additional dilutions.