Saccharomyces

Saccharomyces is a genus of yeast fungi of the class Saccharomycetes. They occur in foods and beverages such as fruit juices, fruits, and alcoholic beverages, and also in soil and on human skin. Saccharomyces cerevisiae, the familiar baker’s and brewer’s yeast, is the workhorse of bread, beer, wine, and bioethanol production, converting sugars to alcohol and carbon dioxide. Selected strains give reliable fermentation performance, and the genus is also a model organism for genetics and cell biology research. Industrial strain selection focuses on fermentation speed, alcohol tolerance, and flavour profile, with different strains suited to bread, lager, ale, wine, and bioethanol. Because the genus is so well characterized, it also serves as a model organism in genetics and cell biology research worldwide.