When growing under anoxic conditions, budding yeasts require the uptake of exogenous sterols via Aus1 and Pdr11, the anaerobic conversion of dihydroorotate to orotate via Ura1 or anaerobically specialized Ura9, and the uptake of nicotinic acid via Tna1 and the salvage pathway gene Npt1, among other adaptations. Combining high-throughput phenotyping and genomics will help to deduce how this complex phenotype evolved, as well as shed light on yeast ecology.

Oleaginous yeasts are very promising for the production of biobased oleochemicals and many of them have been described. In this review, several of the limits for the definition of oleaginous yeast are discussed and analyzed to offer a more specific definition.

Most yeast species belonging to the Wickerhamiella/Starmerella (W/S) clade have unusual metabolic characteristics—fructophily and production of polyols as fermentation products. They also harbour large numbers of horizontally acquired genes, some of which were recently shown to be functional in their new setting, acting in fructose transport, in alcoholic fermentation, and in siderophore or thiamine synthesis. The W/S clade, in which many species have not yet been formally described and most remain poorly characterized, emerges as a fascinating model to study the evolution of metabolism.

Yeasts of the Spathaspora clade have the ability to convert d-xylose to ethanol and/or xylitol. The core group of the genus Spathaspora has 22 species, both formally described and not yet described. Among the d-xylose-fermenting Spathaspora species, Sp. passalidarum is the best ethanol producer, displaying high ethanol yields and productivities, which suggests this species as a potential candidate for domestication and use in the fermentation of lignocellulosic materials.

Competition for a place in the sun led Zygosacharomyces bailii to develop unique innate weak acid resistance mechanisms. Allowing it to adapt to weak acid environments, otherwise hostile for the competitors (bacteria, other yeasts), these mechanisms surely contribute in securing the survival of the species.

Wine is a complex beverage, comprising thousands of metabolites that are produced through the action of microbial communities that originate in the vineyard and the winery and which reflect the influence of several factors including grape variety, geographical location, climate, vineyard spraying, technological practices and season. As these microbial inhabitants of the vineyard and winery can directly influence wine flavour and aroma, there is enormous interest in isolating and characterising these communities in order to increase wine flavour diversity, while enhancing regionality. In this review we describe the role and relevance of the main non-Saccharomyces yeast species found in vineyards and wineries, including the latest applications of these species in both winemaking and other biotechnological applications, while providing details of the molecular and genomic resources that are available for their in depth characterisation.

The budding yeast Naumovozyma castellii (syn. Saccharomyces castellii) has been used in a wide diversity of research studies regarding molecular genetics and functional genomics. Significantly, it has contributed to major insights concerning the molecular mechanisms of telomere maintenance and genome evolution, revealing a functional RNA interference pathway in budding yeast and adding intriguing new perspectives on centromere DNA evolution.

From glorious beginnings in the discovery of immunity by phagocytosis over a hundred years ago, Metschnikowia species are now studied as agents of nectar transformation, open-air fermentations, and biocontrol of fruit and wine spoilage. They share a conserved mating system and form intriguing pairs of needle-shaped ascospores. Many species have a strong biogeography, are good models of speciation, and some may even hold the key to the evolution of obligate parasitism in yeasts.

Debaryomyces hansenii is a halotolerant yeast with a high biotechnological potential but research in this yeast is limited by its molecular peculiarities. Halotolerance, osmotic stress, genome characteristics or biotechnological and medical interests of D. hansenii are discussed.

Paracoccidioides are the causative agents of mycosis found in Latin America. Methods have emerged to study them, but challenges remain before new approaches to treatment can be developed.

The success of the hybrid lager brewing yeast Saccharomyces pastorianus as an industrial organism is due to a unique combination of beneficial traits inherited from the parental species (S. cerevisiae x S. eubayanus). The availability of S. eubayanus isolates from various geographical areas has made way for the generation of tailor-made, non-GM ‘S. pastorianus’ strains for immediate use in the brewing industry.

The genus Saccharomyces includes seven species, most of which evolved in the absence of domestication. Saccharomyces species live throughout temperate zones, and are most often found associated with hardwoods. Researchers are continuously learning about Saccharomyces population structure, natural history, and life cycles in the absence of domestication, and developing the genus as a model of ecology and evolution.

Dekkera bruxellensis is known as both a spoilage yeast and a contributor to flavour and aroma in some beers and wines. Current research focuses on these processes, carbon metabolism and yeast evolution.

Candida glabrata is now a major pathogen which, despite its name, is closer to Saccharomyces cerevisiae than Candida albicans, and is amenable to molecular genetics. Challenges for future research include understanding how it adapts to the human host.

Schizosaccharomyces japonicus differs greatly from the more widely studied S. pombe insmany respects: larger cell size, chromosomal behavior during cell division, and efficent hyphal growth. The recent development of genetic resources for S. japonicus have provided tools comparable to those available for S. pombe. Thus, S. japonicus has the potential to serve as a key model organism for understanding the yeast-hyphal cell transition.

The importance of the Basidiomycete Cryptococcus neoformans to human health has stimulated its development as an experimental model for both basic physiology and pathogenesis. We briefly review the history of this fascinating and versatile fungus, current tools available for its study, and some notable aspects of its biology that contribute to virulence.

Kluyveromyces lactis is found in milk and involved in cheese production. A growing list of molecular genetic techniques mean that it has great potential both as a model organism and in biotechnology.

Candida famata is a member of the Candida/Debaryomyces group. Rather than being a human pathogen, it has attracted interest because it produces high levels of riboflavin and has been used as a source of this compound.

Yarrowia lipolytica has some distinctive characteristics which make it increasingly attractive to study. One of these in particular is its ability to use hydrophobic substrates.