BACKGROUND Killer yeasts have been used to combat contaminating wild yeasts in food, to control pathogenic fungi in plants, and in the medical field, to develop novel antimycotics for the treatment of human and animal fungal infections. Among these killer yeasts, Tetrapisispora phaffii (formerly known as Kluyveromyces phaffii) secretes a glycoprotein known as Kpkt that is lethal to spoilage yea...

OBJECTIVES The intestinal microflora affects the pathogenesis of several autoimmune diseases by influencing immune system function. Some bacteria, such as lactic acid bacteria, have been reported to have beneficial effects on immune function. However, little is known about the effects of yeasts. Here, we aimed to investigate the effects of various dietary yeasts contained in fermented foods on ...

Biosurfactants are surface active compounds derived from living organisms, mainly microorganisms. Almost all surfactants currently in use are chemically derived from petroleum. However, in recent years, the interest in chemical surfactants has been substituted by an increase in the use of microbial surfactants. Compared with chemical surfactants, biosurfactants have more advantages, for example...

The aim of this study was to examine the physiological and genetic stability of the industrial wine yeasts Saccharomyces cerevisiae and Saccharomyces bayanus var. uvarum under acidic stress during fermentation. The yeasts were sub-cultured in aerobic or fermentative conditions in media with or without l-malic acid. Changes in the biochemical profiles, karyotypes, and mitochondrial DNA profiles ...

OBJECTIVES To assess colonization and serious infection with yeasts and the risk factors that are associated with colonization by these organisms. DESIGN Monthly surveillance for colonization and infection over a period of 2 years. SETTING A long-term-care facility (LTCF) attached to an acute-care Veterans Affairs Medical Center. PARTICIPANTS The 543 men and 10 women in the facility. ME...

Over the past several decades there has been a significant increase in the number of fungal diseases. Although infections can occur in normal hosts, most of them are seen in patients who are immunosuppressed or immunocompromised such as those with AIDS or who have received transplants, corticoids or anticancer drugs [1]. Other predisposing factors responsible for yeast infections include overus...

UNLABELLED The fungal pathogen Histoplasma capsulatum parasitizes host phagocytes. To avoid antimicrobial immune responses, Histoplasma yeasts must minimize their detection by host receptors while simultaneously interacting with the phagocyte. Pathogenic Histoplasma yeast cells, but not avirulent mycelial cells, secrete the Eng1 protein, which is a member of the glycosylhydrolase 81 (GH81) fami...

Yeasts play an important role in the biology of the fruit fly, Drosophila melanogaster. In addition to being a valuable source of nutrition, yeasts affect D. melanogaster behavior and interact with the host immune system. Most experiments investigating the role of yeasts in D. melanogaster biology use the baker's yeast, Saccharomyces cerevisiae. However, S. cerevisiae is rarely found with natur...

The gene coding for actin from Phaffia rhodozyma was cloned and sequenced. The Phaffia actin gene contains four intervening sequences and the predicted protein consists of 375 amino acids. The structural features of the Phaffia actin introns were studied and compared with actin introns from seven fungi and yeasts with ascomycetous and basidiomycetous affinity. It was shown that the architecture...

Microbial production of chemicals and proteins from biomass-derived and waste sugar streams is a rapidly growing area of research and development. While the model yeast Saccharomyces cerevisiae is an excellent host for the conversion of glucose to ethanol, production of other chemicals from alternative substrates often requires extensive strain engineering. To avoid complex and intensive engine...