title: Overexpression of smORF YNR034W-A/EGO4 in Saccharomyces cerevisiae increases the fermentative efficiency of Agave tequilana Weber must.
abstract: Fermentative processes are widely used to produce food, beverages and biofuels. Saccharomyces cerevisiae is an efficient ethanol-producing microorganism. However, a concentration of high ethanol and other metabolites can affect yeast viability and decrease the ethanol yield. Many studies have focused on improving the fermentative efficiency, mostly through the genetic engineering of genes that have a direct impact on specific metabolic pathways. In the present study, we characterized a small open reading frame encoding a protein with an unknown function and biological role termed YNR034W-A. We analyzed the expression profile of the YNR034W-A gene during growth and glucose treatment, finding that it is expressed during the diauxic shift and stationary phase and is negatively regulated by glucose. We overexpressed the YNR034W-A gene in the BY4741 laboratory strain and a wild-type yeast strain (AR5) isolated during the Tequila fermentation process. Transformant derivatives of the AR5 strain showed an improved fermentative efficiency during fermentation of Agave tequilana Weber juice. We suggest that the improved fermentative efficiency is the result of a higher stress tolerance response in the YNR034W-A overexpressing transformant.
authors.affiliation: División de Ciencias Naturales y Exactas, Departamento de Biología, Universidad de Guanajuato, Campus Guanajuato, Noria Alta s/n, Colonia Noria Alta, CP 36050, Guanajuato, Gto, Mexico.
authors.forename: Naurú Idalia
authors.initials: NI
authors.lastname: Vargas-Maya
authors.affiliation: División de Ciencias Naturales y Exactas, Departamento de Biología, Universidad de Guanajuato, Campus Guanajuato, Noria Alta s/n, Colonia Noria Alta, CP 36050, Guanajuato, Gto, Mexico.
authors.forename: Gloria Angélica
authors.initials: GA
authors.lastname: González-Hernández
authors.affiliation: División de Ciencias Naturales y Exactas, Departamento de Biología, Universidad de Guanajuato, Campus Guanajuato, Noria Alta s/n, Colonia Noria Alta, CP 36050, Guanajuato, Gto, Mexico.
authors.forename: Israel Enrique
authors.initials: IE
authors.lastname: Padilla-Guerrero
authors.affiliation: División de Ciencias Naturales y Exactas, Departamento de Biología, Universidad de Guanajuato, Campus Guanajuato, Noria Alta s/n, Colonia Noria Alta, CP 36050, Guanajuato, Gto, Mexico. torguz@ugto.mx.
authors.forename: Juan Carlos
authors.identifier: 0000-0002-1386-9499
authors.initials: JC
authors.lastname: Torres-Guzmán
mesh_terms: D027882:Agave; D000434:Alcoholic Beverages / Q000032:analysis; D000431:Ethanol / Q000378:metabolism; D005285:Fermentation; D020869:Gene Expression Profiling; D005818:Genetic Engineering; D005947:Glucose / Q000737:chemistry; D007218:Industrial Microbiology; D016366:Open Reading Frames; D012441:Saccharomyces cerevisiae / Q000235:genetics* / Q000378:metabolism
chemical_list: D000431:Ethanol; D005947:Glucose
keywords: Agave tequilana; Fermentation; Saccharomyces; Tequila; smORF