THE VALUE OF LONG-CHAIN FATTY ACID COMPOSITION IN THE IDENTIFICATION OF SOME BREWERY YEASTS

Abstract

The cellular long-chain fatty acids of 72 strains representing 29 species of brewery yeasts were extracted by saponification and analysed as methyl esters by gas chromatography. With this method, it was possible to distinguish between Saccharomyces cerevisiae and five other groups from the brewery industry, only four hours after they were obtained from 48 h old cultures under standard conditions. This compares favourably with the 7 to 10 days for conventional methods.