A biometric study of higher alcohol production in Saccharomyces cerevisiae.

A hundred strains of Saccharomyces cerevisiae were examined for the ability to produce higher alcohols. In the strains tested the production of higher alcohols was found to be an individual strain characteristic and, as such, was statistically significant. The characteristics of the strains used (flocculation ability, foaming ability, killer character, and non-H2S production) were found to be uncorrelated to isobutanol and isoamyl alcohol production, whereas the production of high levels of n-propanol was found to be related to inability to produce H2S. This, in turn, suggests a link to methionine biosynthesis.