Carotenoids of yeasts isolated from the Brazilian ecosystem

The carotenoid composition of pigmented yeasts isolated in Brazil was studied. The yeasts were cultured in yeast malt broth at 200 rpm, 25 °C, for 5 days, without illumination. Open column, thin layer and high performance liquid chromatography were used to separate, identify and quantify the carotenoids. The major pigments found in these yeasts were torulene and β-carotene. β-Carotene predominated in Rhodotorula graminis-125, Rhodotorula glutinis and Sporobolomyces roseus, while torulene was the principal carotenoid in Rhodotorula mucilaginosa. The yeast R. glutinis had the highest total carotenoid production (881 μg/l), followed by R. graminis (594 μg/l), Rhodotorula mucilaginosa-137 (590 μg/l), Rhodotorula mucilaginosa-108 (562 μg/l) and Rhodotorula mucilaginosa-135 (545 μg/l). Rhodotorula minuta and S. roseus had the lowest carotenoid contents (168 and 237 μg/l, respectively). In μg/g of dry cells, R. glutinis had a total carotenoid concentration of 132 μg/g.