Biological pretreatment of fruit residues using the genus Pleurotus: A review

White-rot fungi represent an outstanding alternative for valorizing fruit residues due to their ability to decompose structural carbohydrates and other bioactive compounds abundant in fruit waste. Enzymes produced by these fungi are responsible for the biological pretreatment process carried out by oxidases and hydrolases, resulting in the degradation of structural carbohydrates and lignin. This work reviews and compares reported data on Solid-State Fermentation (SSF) and Submerged Fermentation (SmF) using various strains from the genus Pleurotus for the biological pretreatment of fruit residues. SSF could be the best cultivation strategy due to its similarity to the natural growth conditions of fungi on wood substrates. Nonetheless, SmF has advantages if the process is to be scaled at industrial level. Further research will be required to determine adequate growth conditions of Pleurotus spp. on fruit residues, including the study of relevant parameters of the process (i.e., fungi strains, substrates, additives). • Fruit residues are suitable to produce enzymes and biomass with Pleurotus spp. • Fruit residues' valorization can be done using the enzymatic versatility of Pleurotus • Growth conditions of Pleurotus in fruit residues are key to enhance enzyme production. • SSF seems to be more efficient for enzyme production than SmF.