Global analysis of yeast gene expression during a brewery
fermentation.
Tom Pugh (1), Barbara Dunn (2), Andrew Venteicher (2), Sandra
Metzner (2), John Seabrooks (1), David Ryder (1), Patrick Brown (3),
David Botstein (2)
(1) Research and Development, Miller Brewing Company, 3939 W. Highland
Blv, Milwaukee, WI 53201-0482, USA;
(2) Department of Genetics, Stanford Univ. School of Medicine, Stanford,
CA 94305;
(3) Department of Biochemistry, Stanford Univ. School of Medicine,
Stanford, CA 94305
Elucidation of the complete DNA sequence of the yeast Saccharomyces
cerevisiae and the advent of DNA microarray technology have
revolutionized the fields of genetics and molecular biology. These
discoveries have made it possible to study the expression of all yeast
genes in a single experiment. This approach has provided valuable
insights into gene function and the involvement of specific genes in
various cellular functions. To gain a more complete understanding of
yeast physiology during brewery fermentation, DNA microarrays were used
to determine the genome-wide temporal patterns of gene expression during
a lager beer fermentation. Using genomic DNA hybridizations, we have
shown that the genome of the lager yeast Saccharomyces
pastorianus is similar enough to that of S. cerevisiae to
make possible the use of S. cerevisiae microarrays for expression
analysis. We found that many genes vary greatly in expression level
during fermentation: of the approximately 6,200 genes assayed, 1,700
were induced greater than 4-fold and 2,100 were repressed greater than
4-fold. The patterns of gene expression correlated with various landmark
events of fermentation, including initiation and cessation of cell
growth, sugar consumption, and alcohol production. In addition, the
environmental stress response was strongly induced in lager yeast during
fermentation.
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