Evaluation of Chinese Saccharomyces cerevisiae Wine Strains from Different Geographical Origins

Interdelta sequence typing was used to investigate the genetic diversity of 54 Chinese indigenous wine strains of Saccharomyces cerevisiae selected on the basis of preliminary sequence analysis from 349 strains that were isolated previously from 15 spontaneous fermentations in Shanshan, Xinjiang, and Qing Tongxia, Ningxia, China. Of the 54 strains tested, 78% (42/54) were confirmed as genetically distinct. Dendrograms based on strain similarity revealed differences in the genetic relationships of Xinjiang yeast populations between table and wine grape varieties, in addition to differences between red and white grape varieties in Ningxia (Dice coefficients of 0.448 and 0.674, respectively). When data from Saccharomyces strains collected from California, France, Italy, northern Europe, and Spain were included in the analysis, the dendrogram revealed five groups containing 51, 4, 48, 3, and 1 strain, respectively. Ningxia and Xinjiang provinces displayed local specific S. cerevisiae biotas that show a clear separation from other strains. Cluster XJ19 isolated from Xinjiang displayed a high level of similarity with UCD587, UCD2515, and UCD2516 from California. Clusters XJ2, XJ7, XJ20, and XJ3, also isolated from Xinjiang, had a lower degree of similarity with other Chinese indigenous genotypes and strains from other regions. This study compares, for the first time, the genetic diversity and relationships between indigenous S. cerevisiae wine strains collected from Xinjiang and Ningxia provinces in China with wine strains from different geographic regions.