Interaction between Hanseniaspora uvarum and Saccharomyces cerevisiae during alcoholic fermentation

During wine fermentation, Saccharomyces clearly dominate over non-Saccharomyces wine yeasts, and several factors could be related to this dominance. However, the main factor causing the reduction of cultivable non-Saccharomyces populations has not yet been fully established. In the present study, various single and mixed fermentations were performed to evaluate some of the factors likely responsible for the interaction between Saccharomyces cerevisiae and Hanseniaspora uvarum. Alcoholic fermentation was performed in compartmented experimental set ups with ratios of 1:1 and 1:9 and the cultivable population of both species was followed. The cultivable H. uvarum population decreased sharply at late stages when S. cerevisiae was present in the other compartment, similarly to alcoholic fermentations in non-compartmented vessels. Thus, cell-to-cell contact did not seem to be the main cause for the lack of cultivability of H. uvarum. Other compounds related to fermentation performance (such as sugar and ethanol) and/or certain metabolites secreted by S. cerevisiae could be related to the sharp decrease in H. uvarum cultivability. When these factors were analyzed, it was confirmed that metabolites from S. cerevisiae induced lack of cultivability in H. uvarum, however ethanol and other possible compounds did not seem to induce this effect but played some role during the process. This study contributes to a new understanding of the lack of cultivability of H. uvarum populations during the late stages of wine fermentation.