Carbohydrate metabolism and the lager yeast transcriptome during brewery fermentation

The fermentable carbohydrate composition of wort and the manner in which it is utilised by yeast during brewery fermentation has a direct influence on fermentation efficiency and quality of the finished product. In this study the response of a brewing yeast strain to changes in wort fermentable carbohydrate concentration and composition during full-scale (3275 hL) brewery fermentation was investigated by measuring transcriptome changes with the aid of oligonucleotide based DNA arrays. Up to 90% of the detectable genes showed a significant (P 0.05) differential expression pattern during fermentation and the majority of these genes showed either transient or prolonged peaks in expression following the exhaustion of the monosaccharides glucose and fructose from the wort. Those which did not display this apparent carbon catabolite derepression response were mainly those genes involved in cytokinesis and cell budding, which had higher expression values during active growth of cells. Transcriptional activity of many genes was consistent with their known responses to glucose de/repression under laboratory conditions, despite the presence of di- and trisaccharide sugars in the wort.

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James N, Graham N, Clements D, Schildknecht B, May S