Effects of high pressure on the accumulation of trehalose and glutathione in the Saccharomyces cerevisiae cells

The metabolism of trehalose, a marker of general physiological stress, and glutathione (GSH), another marker of oxidative stress marker, was examined in exponentially growing Saccharomyces cerevisiae cells after treatment with high pressure air. The growth of yeast cells was dramatically decreased under high pressure and the duration of stable growth was significantly shortened. Scanning electron microscopy showed that high pressure led to the disruption of membrane structure. Yeast cells were wrinkled or broken under higher pressure, indicating high pressure was a strong stress factor. The maximum yields of trehalose and GSH were obtained when the cells were cultured under 1.0 MPa pressure for 3 and 6 h, respectively. The increase of the production of trehalose and GSH indicated that trehalose and glutathione had protection effects under the stress of high pressure.