Yeast

    Technical Data

    Type of microorganism Yeast
    Target proteins Dairy proteins, egg proteins, sweet proteins, meat proteins, enzymes. See organism table for specific cases.
    Wild-type or GMO Mostly GMO, also one wild-type case. See organism table for specific cases.
    Production mode (intracellular/extracellular) Mainly extracellular production due to ease of DSP (Eastham & Leman, 2024)
    C & N source Primarily glucose or glycerol used as C-source, and ammonium salts or amino-acids (in the form of yeast extract) as N-source. (De Brabander et al., 2023; Martin & Chan, 2024). See organism table for specific cases.
    Regulatory status in Europe The production of food related proteins in yeasts is not allowed. Some cases are issued as safe for consumption by EFSA, but are not allowed yet. See organism table for specific cases.
    Regulatory status in other parts of the world Several products have FDA GRAS apporval or self-affirmed GRAS in the US. Two products are allowed in Canada. See organism table for specific cases.
    Companies
    Average yield 0.5-3 g/L (Eastham & Leman, 2024)
    General temperature range 25-40°C (De Brabander et al., 2023)
    General pH range pH 4-9 (De Brabander et al., 2023)
    Growth rate (µ) 0.23-1.04/hour (Bratosin et al., 2021
    Ease of genetic modification Overall very easy genetic manipulation (Fraczek et al., 2018)
    Feedstock suitability Wide variety of agro-industrial waste streams can be used as feedstock (Rajput et al., 2024). See organism table for specific cases.
    Downstream purification processing complexity (isloation, lysis, purification)
    Advantages Eukaryotic PTMs, easy genetic modification, high protein secretion (De Brabander et al., 2023)
    Challenges (Key limitations, risk factors) Cannot perform complex post-translational modifications, glycosylation patterns are different form mammals (Cereghino, 1999)
    Publications/references