The production of 4-hydroxyphenyllactic acid (4-HO-PLA), a novel antifungal compound, was studied in Lactobacillus sp. SK007 growth. When grown in MRS broth, the strain could produce 75 mu g/ml HO-4-PLA, which was the highest reported so far. Tyrosine and 4-hydroxyphenylpyruvic acid (HO-4-PPA) supplements during fermentation could both increase the HO-4-PLA production yield, and the effect of HO-4-PPA on HO-4-PLA production was remarkably better than that of tyrosine. Using HO-4-PPA as substrate could effectively produce HO-4-PLA, which reached 1.26 mg/ml. (C) 2009, The Society for Biotechnology, Japan. All rights reserved.