Intergeneric protoplast fusion between Kluyveromyces and Saccharomyces cerevisiae -: to produce sorbitol from Jerusalem artichokes

The construction of inulin-assimilating and sorbitol-producing fusants was achieved by intergeneric protoplast fusion between Kluyveromyces sp. Y-85 and Saccharomyces cerevisiae E-15. The cells of parental strains were pretreated with 0.1% EDTA (w/v) and 2-mercaptoethanol (0.1%, v/v) and then exposed to 2.0% (w/v) Zymolase at 30 degreesC for 30-40 min. The optimized fusion condition demonstrated that with the presence of 30% (w/v) polyethylene glycol 6000 (PEG-6000) and 10 mM CaCl2 for 30 min, the fusion frequency reached 2.64 fusants/10(6) parental cells. The fusants were screened by different characters between two parental strains and further identified by DNA contents, inulinase activity and sorbitol productivity. One of the genetically stable fusants, Strain F27, reached a maximal sorbitol production of 4.87 g/100 ml under optimal fermentation condition.