Definition
noun, plural: yeasts
Colloquial name for the fungus that is characteristically single-celled most of its life, eukaryotic, reproduce asexually by budding or binary fission, produce ascospores, capable of fermenting carbohydrates.
Supplement
Yeasts are important organism for their metabolic products used in the production of alcohol, wine, fruit juices, and leavening agent.
Important yeasts include Saccharomyces cerevisiae that has been used commercially and Candida albicans that is an opportunistic pathogen in humans.
Word origin: Middle English yeest, from Old English gist
Related term(s):
- Yeast infection
- Yeast rnase
- Yeast syndrome
- Yeast vectors
- Yeast artificial chromosome
- Cultivated yeast
- Dried yeast
- Compressed yeast
- Brewers yeast
Mentioned in:
