Screening of pyruvate-producing yeast and effect of nutritional conditions on pyruvate production.
OBJECTIVE
To find a yeast strain that can overproduce pyruvate and to investigate the effect of nutrients on pyruvate production.


RESULTS
Trichosporon cutaneum PD70, a yeast strain that can overproduce pyruvate, was isolated from shake-flask cultures of 132 yeast strains. Pyruvate was measured by the HPLC or DNP method (see Materials and methods). Pyruvate production reached approximately 30.0 +/- 1.0 g l(-1) in basal fermentation medium. Different nutrient supplements had great effects on pyruvate production. Some of the conditions that gave the highest yield are described.


CONCLUSIONS
Exogenous thiamine supplement caused a decrease in pyruvate yield. Some amino acids, such as L-arginine, L-isoleucine and L-valine, caused a minor increase in pyruvate yield. Soybean peptone was the most suitable nitrogen source for pyruvate production. A glucose concentration of 15% in fermentation medium gave the highest yield (34.6 g l(-1)) and the highest yield against consumed glucose (0.429 g g(-1)).


CONCLUSIONS
Nutrients have significant impacts on pyruvate production. As a pyruvate overproducing yeast strain independent of exogenous vitamins or amino acids, T. cutaneum PD70 provides an advantage for commercial pyruvate production.
D000596:Amino Acids / Q000494:pharmacology; D003470:Culture Media / Q000494:pharmacology*; D005285:Fermentation; D005947:Glucose / Q000494:pharmacology; D010461:Peptones / Q000378:metabolism*; D019289:Pyruvic Acid / Q000378:metabolism*; D014250:Trichosporon / Q000187:drug effects / Q000378:metabolism*; D014815:Vitamins / Q000494:pharmacology
D000596:Amino Acids; D003470:Culture Media; D010461:Peptones; D014815:Vitamins; D019289:Pyruvic Acid; D005947:Glucose