To select a Saccharomyces cerevisiae reference strain amenable to experimental techniques used in (molecular) genetic, physiological
and biochemical engineering research, a variety of properties were studied in four diploid, prototrophic laboratory strains. The following
parameters were investigated: 1) maximum specific growth rate in shake-flask cultures; 2) biomass yields on glucose during growth on
defined media in batch cultures and steady-state chemostat cultures under controlled conditions with respect to pH and dissolved oxygen
concentration; 3) the critical specific growth rate above which aerobic fermentation becomes apparent in glucose-limited accelerostat
cultures; 4) sporulation and mating efficiency; and 5) transformation efficiency via the lithium-acetate, bicine, and electroporation methods.
On the basis of physiological as well as genetic properties, strains from the CEN.PK family were selected as a platform for cell-factory
research on the stoichiometry and kinetics of growth and product formation. © 2000 Elsevier Science Inc. All rights reserved.