BACKGROUND Microbial lipids are produced by many oleaginous organisms including the well-characterized yeast Yarrowia lipolytica, which can be engineered for increased lipid yield by up-regulation of the lipid biosynthetic pathway and down-regulation or deletion of competing pathways. RESULTS We describe a strain engineering strategy centered on diacylglycerol acyltransferase (DGA) gene overe...

The basidiomycetous yeast Rhodosporidium toruloides (anamorph, Rhodotorula glutinis) is a common phylloplane epiphyte with biocontrol potential. To understand how R. toruloides adheres to plant surfaces, we obtained nonadherent fungal mutants after chemical mutagenesis with methane-sulfonic acid ethyl ester. Sixteen attachment-minus (Att-) mutants were identified by three methods: (i) screening...

The augmentation of industrial and house wastes and the accidental oil spills raised the problem of their storage and treatment. Bioremediation is an interesting alternative for restauring the ecological equilibrum in polluted environments, based on microbial population dynamics and its ability to consume xenobiotics as carbon source. The yeast species described as having biodegrading abilities...

Rhodotorula (Rhodosporidium) toruloides is an oleaginous yeast with great biotechnological potential, capable of accumulating lipid up to 70% of its dry biomass, and of carotenoid biosynthesis. However, few molecular genetic tools are available for manipulation of this basidiomycete yeast and its high genomic GC content can make routine cloning difficult. We have developed plasmid vectors for t...

Growing demands stimulate the intensification of production and create need for practices that are both economically viable environmentally sustainable. As European Union banned use antibiotics in 2003, several alternative treatments have been suggested, including probiotics. The first probiotic study aquaculture was published 1986, since then probiotics considered as a beneficial tool this ind...