Use of yeast spores as a biocatalyst

Vegetative cells of the yeast Saccharomyces cerevisiae 4011 efficiently sporulated at pH 7.7–8.0 in the presence of 1.0–3.0% of potassium acetate. Spores were prepared by lysing them with a lytic enzyme, zymolyase. Alkaline phosphatase (an enzyme selected as a model) in spores exhibited higher stability toward heat and pH than it did in vegetative cells, and was immobilized in a polyacrylamide gel lattice without any appreciable loss of activity. The activity of alkaline phosphatase in spores and immobilized spores was stably maintained during repeated use for the enzyme reactions. These results indicated the usefulness of yeast spores as a biocatalyst.