SubjectsSubjects(version: 996)
Course, academic year 2026/2027
   
Yeast Biology - NBCM024
Title: Biologie kvasinek
Form of teaching: lecture
Guaranteed by: Institute of Physics of Charles University (32-FUUK)
Faculty: Faculty of Mathematics and Physics
Actual: from 2025
Duration in semesters: 1
Semester: winter
E-Credits: 3
Hours per week, examination: winter s.:2/0, Ex [HT]
Capacity: unlimited
Maximum number of enrolled students: unlimited
Min. number of students: unlimited
4EU+: no
Virtual mobility / capacity: no
State of the course: taught
Language: Czech, English
Teaching methods: full-time
Repeated enrollment: 2 / 2 / 2 / 2
Guarantor: RNDr. Marie Kodedová, Ph.D.
Teacher(s): RNDr. Marie Kodedová, Ph.D.
Class: Fyzika
Classification: Physics > Biophysics and Chemical Physics
Annotation -
History, application and occurrence of yeasts, morphology of yeast cells and cultures, structure of yeast cell, growth and reproduction, cell and life cycle, membrane transport, yeast metabolism, genetics, taxonomy and phylogeny, pathogenic yeasts and biofilms, killer phenomenon, response to oxidative stress.
Last update: Kopecký Vladimír, RNDr., Ph.D. (29.05.2026)
Aim of the course -

Introduction to yeast biology

Last update: Kodedová Marie, RNDr., Ph.D. (11.05.2026)
Course completion requirements -

Oral exam; the requirements for the exam are based on the syllabus.

Last update: Kodedová Marie, RNDr., Ph.D. (11.05.2026)
Literature -

Kurtzman, C. P., Fell, J. W., Boekhout, T.: The Yeasts, a Taxonomic Study. Elsevier, 5. vydání, 2011.

Feldmann, H.: Yeast: Molecular and Cell Biology. Wiley-Blackwell, 2. vydání, 2012.

Hohmann, S., Mager, W. H.: Yeast Stress Responses, Springer, 1. vydání, 2003

Janderová, B., Bendová, O.: Úvod do biologie kvasinek, Nakladatelství Karolinum, 1999.

Last update: Kodedová Marie, RNDr., Ph.D. (11.05.2026)
Teaching methods -

recommended optional course

Last update: Kodedová Marie, RNDr., Ph.D. (11.05.2026)
Course assessment methods and requirements for successful completion, grading scheme -

The oral exam requirements fall within the scope of the lecture syllabus.

Last update: Kodedová Marie, RNDr., Ph.D. (11.05.2026)
Syllabus -

  • History, application and occurrence of yeasts: Historical development, application of yeasts in the food industry (production of cheese, beer, wine, baker's yeast, soy sauce, balsamic vinegar, cocoa, coffee, and meat products) and in other industries, yeast as a model organism, pathogenic yeasts, occurrence of yeasts in the environment.

  • Yeast morphology: Cell morphology - size and shape, measurement of cells, effect of vegetative reproduction on cell shape, pseudomycelium and mycelium (hyphae), changes in yeast morphology, special cells (blastospores, arthrospores, ballistospores, chlamydospores, giant cells - Titan and Goliath), polymorphism, sexual reproduction - ascospores and asci.

  • Morphology of yeast culture: Growth in liquid and on solid media, colony morphology, giant and single-cell colonies, yeast biofilms (development, infection, resistance, and treatment), multi-species biofilms.

  • Structure of yeast cell: Capsule, cell wall - structure (glucans, mannoproteins, chitin) and biosynthesis, scars (types and staining), protoplasts, spheroplasts, induced fusion of protoplasts, flocculation, plasma membrane - structure (phospholipids, sterols, membrane proteins), secretory pathway, endoplasmic reticulum, ribosomes, Golgi apparatus, nucleus, mitochondria - shape and size, vacuole, cytosol, peroxisomes, cytoskeleton.

  • Yeast growth and reproduction: Basic yeast nutrition, carbon and nitrogen sources, oligobiogenic and trace elements, growth factors, cultivation media, growth of culture, growth curve (lag phase, exponential, diauxic, post-diauxic, and stationary phase), growth rate (generation time), synchronized growth, effect of temperature and inoculum size on culture growth, bound cells.

  • Cell and life cycle of yeast: Cell cycle of Saccharomyces cerevisiae and Schizosaccharomyces pombe (phases, gene control, start - control point), life cycle - alternative programs, yeast cell mating (mating types, pheromones, homothallism, heterothallism, agglutination, conjugation, sporulation), sexual reproduction of Schizosaccharomyces pombe.

  • Membrane transport: Cellular transport mechanisms, types of transport, nonspecific diffusion, selective channels, carrier-mediated transport (passive, active), types of ATPases (F, V, P, ABC), secondary active transporters (symport, antiport), transport of substances (glycerol, cations, sugars, amino acids, peptides, nucleic acid bases, etc.).

  • Yeast metabolism: Fermentation, metabolic regulation (Pasteur and Custers effects), glucose uptake - regulation of glycolysis, catabolic repression (Crabtree effect).

  • Yeast genetics: Nuclear genome, plasmids, mitochondrial genetics and mutants.

  • Yeast taxonomy and phylogeny: Development of species classification, taxonomic databases, anamorph, teleomorph, molecular mechanisms of yeast evolution, whole-genome duplication (WGD), segmental duplication, hybridization, introgression, horizontal gene transfer, phylogenetic tree, CTG and pathogenic yeasts.

  • Killer phenomenon: Killer factor, mechanism, killer strains with dsRNA (K1, K2, K28) and with dsDNA, with genes on chromosomes.

  • Response to oxidative stress: Yeast stress responses (heat shock, osmotic stress, ROS, starvation), defence mechanisms against oxidative stress (enzymatic reactions, antioxidants, sequestration of redox-active metals), types and effects of ROS, lipid peroxidation, superoxide dismutases, catalases, thioredoxin, glutathione, regulation by transcription factors.

Last update: Kodedová Marie, RNDr., Ph.D. (29.05.2026)
 
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