The effects of propiconazole on extra-cellular enzyme levels in Trametes versicolor have been investigated during wood colonization and degradation. The working hypothesis was that the biocide could alter metabolic pathways, which could lead to an alteration of extra-cellular enzyme production. In the presence of a propiconazole sub-lethal concentration, the wood degradation rate decrease concomitantly with the lag phase of fungal development observed during wood colonisation. The pattern of production of enzymes involved in polysaccharide degradation (b-glucosidases, glucuronidases, cellobiohydrolases), nitrogen (leucine aminopeptidase) and phosphorus (acid phosphatase) mobilization was only slightly altered in the presence of the biocide. In experiments performed in the presence of propiconazole, there was a strong induction of chitinases at the beginning of the colonization process. Addition of caffeine, a pleiotropic drug, which is also a chitinase inhibitor, together with propiconazole resulted in synergistic inhibition of the fungal growth. The implication of these results in the development of a new wood preservation strategy is discussed.