SCHIZOSACCHAROMYCES OCTOSPORUS 



W. C. Coker and Louise Wilson 

 (With Plate 55, Containing 25 Figures) 



In the course of some special work on wild and domestic yeasts 

 during the fall of last year (1910) we were surprised to discover 

 in Chapel Hill a member of the rare genus Schizosaccharomyces 

 Lindner. The species appeared in the following manner: Un- 

 broken Delaware grapes bought in the Chapel Hill market were 

 put in a test tube, covered with distilled water, and set aside. 

 Slow fermentation started up and a precipitate began to appear. 

 After three weeks, an examination of the precipitate showed all 

 stages of development, both vegetative and reproductive. A close 

 examination showed the species to be Schizosaccharomyces octo- 

 sporus Beyerinck. Cultures were made from this in various solu- 

 tions and in most cases spore formation was secured. Fresh cul- 

 tures of this yeast were also obtained later from California Tokay 

 grapes, using the same method as with the Delaware grapes. 



The genus Schizosaccharomyces is a small one proposed by 

 Lindner* in 1893 to include those forms of conjugating yeast-like 

 fungi which multiply vegetatively not by budding, as in other 

 yeasts, but by fission, as in most cell division. The species S. 

 Pombe was the first to be discovered and is the one on which the 

 genus was founded. Since that time three other species of the 

 genus have been described : S. octosporus Beyerinck,f S. mellacei 

 (Jorg.) Lindner,^ and 5*. asporus Eyckmann. Of these, S. 

 Pombe and 5\ mellacei produce only four spores in conjugation, 

 while in S. asporus, as the name implies, spore formation seems 

 to be suppressed. 



The members of this genus form a peculiar group of yeasts 

 hitherto found only in hot countries, and so far little known. 

 5\ mellacei was found in Jamaica, 5\ Pombe in tropical Africa, 



* Wochenschr. f. Braueri 10: 1298. 1893. 



f Centralblatt f. Bacteriol. 16 : 49. 



% Mikr. Betriebs-kontr. Berl. 404. 1901. 



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