Identification and molecular analysis of non-Saccahromycesyeast species isolataed from grape surface from Bozcaada (Çanakkale, Turkey)

Grape is mostly preferred habitat for the yeasts and the natural yeast flora on the grape berries affect the wine production. Even though, many study conducted on the identification of yeast species isolated from fermentation process, yeast flora on grape-berry surface is surprisingly poorly documented. In our research, we described yeast flora and diversity on grape berries collected from Bozcaada, Turkey.Metschnikowiapulcherrimayeast species are widely distributed on mature grapes andhaveextracellular pulcherrimin pigment synthesis.There is a variation in phenotypic, genetic and biocontrol characteristics among the strains of M. pulcherrima.Grape varieties grown in Bozcaada, Karasakız, Efes Karası, Çavuş, Atasarısı, Alphonse, Cinsaut, KınalıYapıncak, Cardinal, Karalahna, PembeGemre, KokuluKabak, and Cabernet were used in our research. Sixteen different yeast species were identified as Cryptococcus laurentii, Cr. neoformans, Cr. albidus, Cr. humicola, Candida. famata, C. holmii, C. zeylanoides, C. sake, C. magnoliae, C. membranifaciens, M. pulcherrima, Saccharomyces cerevisiae, Kloeckeraapis, K. apiculata, Rhodotorula mucilaginosa and R. glutinis. Grape sucrose was hydrolysed by inulinase enzyme of M. pulcherrima yeast species. Antagonistic activity of M. pulcherrima yeast species to microorgnisms became variable. Different stres conditions effect the growth and pulcherrimin synthesis. Pigment synthesis might be associatedwith the amino acid biyosynthesis pathway.M. pulcherrima yeast strains showed four haplotype patterns. Kınalı Yapıncak yeast population showed the highest nucleotide and haplotype diversity. Genetic variation within the grape yeast population was greater than the genetic variation between the yeast populations of grape varieties growing in the same vineyard.