Stress Tolerance in Yeast Biotechnology

Dear Colleagues,

Yeasts are exposed to a variety of adverse environmental conditions during industrial bioprocesses. These stresses include non-optimal temperatures and pH, osmotic challenges, and the presence of inhibitory compounds, which may originate from the pre-treatment of raw materials—such as in lignocellulosic biomass hydrolysates—or accumulate during fermentation as metabolic by-products and target bioproducts. Importantly, with the growing demand for sustainable, circular production systems, there is an increasing focus on using diverse, renewable feedstocks, particularly agro-industrial residues, including not only lignocellulosic materials, but also food processing by-products and food waste. These abundant, underexploited resources represent a vital component of the present and future bioeconomy, providing an alternative to fossil resources and contributing to waste minimization and resource valorization.

However, these complex substrates introduce additional stresses and variabilities to fermentation processes, as they often contain a mixture of specific inhibitory compounds alongside fermentable nutrients. To sense, survive, and adapt to these challenging and dynamic environments, yeasts rely on complex signaling networks that coordinate global transcriptional responses and drive physiological adjustments.

Understanding these molecular mechanisms is crucial for improving yeast stress tolerance—a key factor not only in maintaining microbiological stability in foods and beverages but also in ensuring the robustness, efficiency, and economic viability of industrial bioprocesses. Yet, beyond molecular insights, it is equally important to translate this knowledge into bioprocess optimization strategies. Integrating biological understanding with bioengineering approaches—such as adaptive process control, dynamic feeding, and tailored bioprocess design—can significantly enhance process resilience and productivity, especially when dealing with the heterogeneous, inhibitor-rich nature of food and agro-industrial wastes.

The diversity of yeast species, including the well-established Saccharomyces cerevisiae and a growing range of non-conventional yeasts, offers promising solutions to tackle these challenges and broaden the range of usable substrates and bioproducts.

This Special Issue aims to provide an integrated perspective on yeast stress tolerance, bridging fundamental biological studies with applied bioprocess optimization. It will cover molecular mechanisms, systems biology approaches, strain engineering, and process design, focusing on both conventional and emerging yeast species. By emphasizing the role of agro-industrial residues, food by-products, and food waste valorization in the bioeconomy, this collection seeks to foster innovations that support resilient, flexible, and sustainable bioprocesses in industrial biotechnology for a circular, bio-based future.

Prof. Dr. Isabel Sá-Correia
Dr. Lucília Domingues
Guest Editors

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• response and adaptation to stress
• stress tolerance
• gene and genomic expression under stress
• stress-induced signaling pathways
• yeast diversity
• saccharomyces and non-Saccharomyces yeasts
• tolerance improvement
• metabolic engineering
• synthetic biology
• adaptive laboratory evolution
• strain robustness
• multi-tolerance to stress
• fermentation efficiency
• bioprocess optimization
• bioprocesses in the food and beverage industry
• valorization of agro-industrial residues
• bioconversion of lignocellulosic biomass
• yeast biorefineries
• circular bioeconomy
• industrial biotechnology