Saccharomyces cerevisiae isolates with extreme hydrogen sulfide production showed different oxidative stress resistances responses during wine fermentation by RNA sequencing analysis.

In the wine industry, off-odors occurring during fermentation and bottling caused by hydrogen sulfide (HS) produced by Saccharomyces cerevisiae are still a major problem. Here, two native S. cerevisiae isolates possessing extreme HS production capacities were isolated from 166 strains in Chinese vineyards. Significant differences were observed in RNA sequencing analyses between the two strains. The results showed that sulfur metabolism was highly repressed and genes involved in the NADPH-dependent thioredoxin and glutaredoxin oxidoreduction systems were highly expressed in the non-HS producer; pathways associated with S-adenosyl methionine, and thiamine syntheses, which were related to oxidative stress resistance in yeast, were upregulated in the high HS producer. Oxidative stress tolerance experiment confirmed that the high HS producer possessed better oxidative stress tolerance, suggesting a potential connection between HS production and cellular stress resistance. Our findings provide insights into the differences in molecular and metabolic mechanisms between non- and high HS producers, highlighting the relationships between HS production and maintenance of the balance of oxidation potential in S. cerevisiae under wine fermentation conditions.