Skip to main content
SpringerLink
Log in

Facts, myths and legends on the prime industrial microorganism

  • Published:
Journal of Industrial Microbiology

Summary

Archaic speculations and firmly established legends regarding the origin of the yeastSaccharomyces cerevisiae and related species are revisited in light of past and recent ecological evidence pointing to a strict association with artificial, man-made environments such as wineries and fermentation plants. The nomenclature within this industrially important group is also discussed in view of the modifications imposed from application of molecular techniques to classification.

This is a preview of subscription content, log in via an institution to check access.

Access this article

Log in via an institution

Price excludes VAT (USA)
Tax calculation will be finalised during checkout.

Instant access to the full article PDF.

Institutional subscriptions

Similar content being viewed by others

References

  1. Barnett, J.A., M.A. Delaney, E. Jones, B. Magson and B. Winch. 1972. The number of yeasts associated with wine grapes of Bordeaux. Arch. Microbiol. 83: 52–55.

    Google Scholar 

  2. Batschinskaya, A.A. 1914. Entwicklungsgeschichte und Kultur des neuen HefepilzesSaccharomyces paradoxus. J. Microbiol. Epidémiol. Immunobiol. 1: 231–247.

    Google Scholar 

  3. Belin, J.M. 1972. Recherches sur la répartition des levures à la surface de la grappe de raisin, Vitis. 11: 135–145.

    Google Scholar 

  4. Belin, J.M. 1979. Contribution à l'étude des levures des chaistaxonomie, répartition des levures. Mycopath. 67: 67–81.

    Google Scholar 

  5. Capriotti, A. 1969. Ecological aspects of the yeasts on the European and USA soils. Ann. Microbiol. (Milan) 19: 63–70.

    Google Scholar 

  6. Carlson M. 1987. Regulation of sugar utilization inSaccharomyces species. J. Bacteriol. 169: 4873–4877.

    Google Scholar 

  7. Castellii, T. 1954. Les agents de la fermentation vinaire. Arch. Mikrobiol. 20: 323–342.

    Google Scholar 

  8. Davenport, R.R. 1974. Microecology of yeasts and yeast-like organisms associated with an English vineyard. Vitis. 13: 123–130.

    Google Scholar 

  9. Di Menna, M.E. 1957. The isolation of yeasts from soil. J. Gen. Microbiol. 17: 678–688.

    Google Scholar 

  10. Federici, F. 1969. I lieviti in alcune frutta selvatiche Nota I. Riv. Biol. 62: 515–521.

    Google Scholar 

  11. Federici, F. 1970. I lieviti in alcune frutta selvatiche Nota II. Riv. Biol. 63: 131–137.

    Google Scholar 

  12. Federici, F., A. Martini and G. Rosini. 1976. I lieviti associati con la superfice del frutto diMorus alba L. Ann. Fac. Agr. Perugia 31: 483–488.

    Google Scholar 

  13. Federici, F., G. Rosini and A. Martini. 1977. The yeast flora ofArbutus unedo L. berries. Ann. Fac. Agr. Perugia 32: 101–105.

    Google Scholar 

  14. Guilliermond, A. 1912. Les Levures. Octave Doin et Fils Paris.

    Google Scholar 

  15. Hansen, E.C. 1883. Undersøgelser over alkoholgjaersvampenes fysiologi og morfologi. II. Om askosporedannelsen hos slaegentSaccharomyces. Medd Carlsberg Lab. 2: 29–86.

    Google Scholar 

  16. Hansen, E.C. 1904. Grundlinien zur systematik der Saccharomyceten. Zentr. Bakteriol. Parasitenk. Abt. II 12: 529–538.

    Google Scholar 

  17. Hansen, E.C. 1908. Recherches sur la physiologie et la morphologie des ferments alcoholiques. XIII. Nouvelles études sur des levures de brasserie à fermentation basse. Comptes-Rendues Laboratoire Carlsberg 7: 179–217.

    Google Scholar 

  18. Holmberg, S. 1982. Genetic differences betweenSaccharomyces carlsbergensis andSaccharomyces cerevisiae. II. Restriction endonuclease analysis of genes in chromosome III. Carlsberg Res. Commun. 47: 233–244.

    Google Scholar 

  19. Kreger-van Rij, N.J.W. 1984. The Yeasts. A taxonomic study. 3rd edn. Elsevier Science Publishers, Amsterdam.

    Google Scholar 

  20. Kurtzman, C.P. and C.J. Robnett. 1991. Phylogenetic relationships among species ofSaccharomyces, Schizosaccharomyces andSchwannyomyces determined from partial ribosomal RNA sequences. Yeast 7: 61–72.

    Google Scholar 

  21. Lodder, J. 1970. The Yeasts. A taxonomic study. 2nd edn, North-Holland Publishing, Amsterdam.

    Google Scholar 

  22. Lodder, J. and N.J.W. Kreger-van Rij. 1952. The Yeasts. A taxonomic study. 1st edn, North-Holland Publishing, Amsterdam.

    Google Scholar 

  23. Martinand, V. and M. Rietsch. 1891. Des microorganismes que l'on recontre sur les raisins murs et de leur développement pendant la fermentation. Comptes Rendus Acad. Sci. Paris 112: 736–749.

    Google Scholar 

  24. Martini, A. 1973. Ibridizzazione DNA/DNA tra specie del genereKluyveromyces. Ann. Fac. Agr. Perugia 28: 1–15.

    Google Scholar 

  25. Martini, A. and H.J. Phaff. 1973. The optical determination of DNA-DNA reassociation. Ann. Microbiol. (Milan) 23: 59–63.

    Google Scholar 

  26. Meyen, J. 1838. Jahresbericht über die Resultate der Arbeiten im Felde der physiologischen Botanik vom der Jahre 1837. Wiegmann Archiv für Naturgeschichte, Band 2, 4: 1–186.

    Google Scholar 

  27. Naumov, G. 1986. Genetic differentiation and ecology of the yeastSaccharomyces paradoxus Batschinskaya. Dokl. Ahad. Nauk. SSSR 289: 213–216.

    Google Scholar 

  28. Naumov, G. 1989. Occurrence ofSaccharomyces paradoxus in Estonia. Proc. Acad. Sci. Estonia 38: 9–12.

    Google Scholar 

  29. Pasteur, L. 1866. Études sur le Vin, ses Maladies, Causes qui les Provoquent. Imprimerie Impérial, Paris.

    Google Scholar 

  30. Pasteur, L. 1872. Nouvelles expériences pour démontrer que le germe de la levure qui fait le vin provient de l-extérieur des grains de raisin. Comptes Rendus de l'Académie des Science de Paris 75: 781–796.

    Google Scholar 

  31. Pedersen, M.B. 1986. DNA sequence polymorphisms in the genusSaccharomyces. IV. Homeologous chromosomes,S. carlsbergensis andS. uvarum. Carlsberg Res. Commun. 51: 185–202.

    Google Scholar 

  32. Peynaud, E. and S. Domerq. 1959. A review on microbiological problems in wine making in France. Amer. J. Vit. Enol. 10: 69–77.

    Google Scholar 

  33. Phaff, J.H., M.W. Miller and M. Shifrine. 1956. The taxonomy of yeasts isolated fromDrosophila in the Yosemite region of California. Antonie van Leeuwenhoek 22: 145–161.

    Google Scholar 

  34. Phaff, H.J., M.W. Miller and E.M. Mrak 1966. The Life of Yeasts Harvard University Press, Cambridge.

    Google Scholar 

  35. Phaff, H.J., M.W. Miller and E.M. Mrak. 1978. The Life of Yeasts, Harvard University Press, Cambridge.

    Google Scholar 

  36. Price, C.W., G.B. Fuson and H.J. Phaff. 1978. Genome comparison in yeast systematics: delimitation of species within the generaSchwannyomyces, Saccharomyces, Debaryomyces andPichia. Microbiol. Rev. 42: 161–193.

    Google Scholar 

  37. Rosini, G. 1982. Influenza della microflora saccaromicetica della cantina sulla fermentazione del mosto d'uva. Vigne e Vini 9: 43–46.

    Google Scholar 

  38. Rosini, G. 1984. Assessment of dominance of added yeast in wine fermentation and origin ofSaccharomyces cerevisiae in winemaking. J. Gen. Appl. Microbiol. 30: 249–256.

    Google Scholar 

  39. Rosini, G., F. Federici, A.E. Vaughan and A. Martini. 1982. Systematics of the species of the yeast genusSaccharomyces associated with the fermentation industry. Eur. J. Appl. Microbiol. Biotechnol. 15: 188–193.

    Google Scholar 

  40. Rosini, G., F. Federici and A. Martini. 1982. Yeast flora of grape berries during ripening. Microbial Ecol. 8: 83–89.

    Google Scholar 

  41. Rosini, G., M. Ciani and A. Vaughan-Martini. 1988. Vino Sagrantino D.O.C.: Correlazione tra le colture diSaccharomyces cerevisiae isolate dai vini e quelle presenti nei locali di vinificazione. Ann. Microbiol. (Milan) 38: 171–179.

    Google Scholar 

  42. Stahl, U. and K. Esser. 1979. Inconsistency in the species concept for yeasts due to mutations during vegetative growth. Eur. J. Appl. Microbiol. Biotechnol. 8: 271–278.

    Google Scholar 

  43. Stelling-Dekker, N.M. 1931. Die sporogenen Hefen. Verhandelingen der Koninklijke Akademie van Wetenschappen te Amsterdam. Tweede Sectie 28: 1–547.

    Google Scholar 

  44. Vaughan-Martini, A. 1989.Saccharomyces paradoxus comb. nov., a newly separated species of theSaccharomyces sensu stricto complex based upon nDNA/nDNA homologies. System. Appl. Microbiol. 12: 119–122.

    Google Scholar 

  45. Vaughan-Martini, A. and C.P. Kurtzman. 1985. Deoxyribonucleic acid relatedness among species of the genusSaccharomyces sensu stricto. Int. J. Syst. Bacteriol. 35: 508–511.

    Google Scholar 

  46. Vaughan-Martini, A. and A. Martini. 1987. Three newly delimited species ofSaccharomyces sensu stricto. Antonie van Leeuwenhoek 52: 77–84.

    Google Scholar 

  47. Walt, van der J.P. 1970. The genusSaccharomyces emend. Reess. In: The Yeasts. A taxonomic study, 2nd edn (J. Lodder, ed.), pp. 555–718, North-Holland Publishing, Amsterdam.

    Google Scholar 

  48. Wickerham, L.J. and K.A. Burton. 1948. Carbon assimilation tests for the classification of yeasts. J. Bacteriol. 56: 363–371.

    Google Scholar 

  49. Yarrow, D. 1984.Saccharomyces Meyen ex Reess. In: The Yeasts. A taxonomic study, 3rd edn (N.J.W. Kreger-van Rij, ed.), pp. 379–395, Elsevier Science Publishers, Amsterdam.

    Google Scholar 

Download references

Author information

Authors and Affiliations

  1. Dipartimento di Biologia Vegetale, Sezione Microbiologia Applicata, University of Perugia, Borgo 20 Giugno 74, I-06121, Perugia, Italy

    Ann Vaughan-Martini & Alessandro Martini

Authors
  1. Ann Vaughan-Martini
    View author publications

    You can also search for this author in PubMed Google Scholar

  2. Alessandro Martini
    View author publications

    You can also search for this author in PubMed Google Scholar

Additional information

This paper is dedicated to Professor Herman Jan Phaff in honor of his 50 years of active research which still continues.

Rights and permissions

Reprints and permissions

About this article

Cite this article

Vaughan-Martini, A., Martini, A. Facts, myths and legends on the prime industrial microorganism. Journal of Industrial Microbiology 14, 514–522 (1995). https://doi.org/10.1007/BF01573967

Download citation

  • Received:

  • Accepted:

  • Issue Date:

  • DOI: https://doi.org/10.1007/BF01573967

Key words

Search

Navigation