Controlling the growth rate of Saccharomyces cerevisiae cells using the glucose analogue D-glucosamine.

By using competition between glucose and its analogue D-glucosamine, we have produced a system in which it is possible to vary the steady-state growth rate of populations of Saccharomyces cerevisiae cells without otherwise altering the composition of the medium or significantly affecting catabolite repression. We demonstrate that D-glucosamine inhibits the accumulation of glucose derived label and the phosphorylation of glucose by hexokinase (EC 2.7.1.1).