Isolation and characterization of yeast for the production of rice wine with low fusel alcohol content.

Fusel alcohols (FAs) are a type of flavor compound found in rice wine. An overly high FA content not only leads to spicy, bitter, and astringent taste but also has side effects. Therefore, screening for yeast that produce low FA contents has attracted much attention.

Radiation-Resistant Micrococcus luteus SC1204 and Its Proteomics Change Upon Gamma Irradiation.

To explore the radiation-resistance mechanisms in bacteria, a radiation-resistant strain SC1204 was isolated from the surrounding area of a (60)Co-γ radiation facility. SC1204 could survive up to 8 kGy dose of gamma irradiation and was identified as Micrococcus luteus by phylogenetic analysis of 16S rRNA gene sequences. Its proteomic changes under 2-kGy irradiation were examined by two-dimensional electrophoresis followed by MALDI-TOF-TOF/MS analysis.

Characterization of a new stearoyl-acyl carrier protein desaturase gene from Jatropha curcas.

A new full-length cDNA of stearoyl-acyl carrier protein desaturase was obtained by RT-PCR and RACE techniques from developing seeds of Jatropha curcas. Sequence alignment showed that its deduced amino acid sequence had high similarity with other stearoyl-acyl carrier protein desaturases. The gene was functionally expressed in E.