Ethyl carbamate regulation and genomic expression of Saccharomyces cerevisiae during mixed-culture yellow rice wine fermentation with Lactobacillus sp.

Ethyl carbamate (EC) is a potentially carcinogenic substance present in most alcoholic beverages, especially in Chinese rice wine. Consequently, much effort has been directed at suppressing EC formation during the production of these beverages, with particular attention directed at the use of urethanase, as this enzyme can directly catalyze EC degradation. Herein, we investigated the ability of three lactic acid bacteria (Oenococcus oeni, Lactobacillus brevis, and Lactobacillus plantarum) to generate urethanase during co-cultivation with Saccharomyces cerevisiae. qPCR and transcriptomic analyses revealed that 57 genes of S. cerevisiae were significantly expressed in the presence of L. brevis, which highlighted the importance of studying urethanase-promoted EC degradation for establishing a powerful technique of EC level control. The obtained results provided deep insights into the adaptive responses of S. cerevisiae to the challenging environment of mixed-culture fermentation.