On May 26 and 27, a group of students and professors from the Graduate Program in Agricultural Microbiology (PPGMBA) attended the National Meeting on Yeasts (ENLEVE), promoted by the National Institute of Yeast Science and Technology (INCT Leveduras) at the Federal University of Minas Gerais (UFMG). This was the first face-to-face meeting of the working group, which brings together yeast specialists from eleven Brazilian institutions. The Viçosa delegation included professors Wendel da Silveira, Monique Eller and Luciano Fietto, all members of the INCT, and several of their students involved in the subject. Master’s student Juliana Fonseca won an award at the event for her work “Metabolism and lipid production of evolved strains of Papiliotrema laurentii selected by adaptive evolution in the laboratory to increase glycerol assimilation”, presented as a poster.

“It was two days of immersion in the subject of yeasts, which allowed us to learn more about the work carried out by each of our colleagues, generating very good interaction. I believe that the INCT’s work is now easier, more productive and integrated,” says Wendel, coordinator of the PPGMBA. Throughout the two-day event, each professor was able to present a lecture on the work carried out on yeasts in their laboratory, while the students were invited to present posters on their research. “For the students, it was also a very rich opportunity to expand their contacts and exchange ideas with the country’s leading yeast experts.”

Master’s student Juliana Fonseca won first place in the André Lachance Prize, awarded to the best posters presented at the event. She presented the research developed, under the guidance of Professor Wendel, on Papiliotrema laurentii and its ability to produce oil as a sustainable alternative for biodiesel production. After months of work in the laboratory, the team managed to improve the yeast’s ability to consume and metabolize glycerol, but, on the other hand, the new strains stopped accumulating the ideal amount of oil. “This is frustrating biotechnologically, but from a research point of view it’s fascinating to try to understand why there was this drop in oil accumulation. Juliana’s work, now in the master’s program, will follow this line, trying to understand why this happened,” says Wendel. In addition to Juliana and Wendel, researchers João Victor Assis and Eduardo de Almeida signed the award-winning paper.

INCT Leveduras
The INCT Leveduras has been operating for over two years and was created with the mission of learning about, preserving and promoting the use of yeasts, with a view to innovation and sustainable development. Currently, the group, which brings together dozens of Brazilian specialists, is divided into four research areas: yeast biodiversity studies; genetic and physiological characterization; omics and bioinformatics; and biotechnological innovations.