Saccharomyces cerevisiae - Yeast

Saccharomyces cerevisiae cells are round to ovoid, 5–10 micrometres in diameter, and prefer to grow aerobically on glucose or maltose under acidic conditions. It is perhaps the most useful yeast, having been used in baking and brewing since ancient times. Saccharomyces cerevisiae is one of the most intensively studied eukaryotic model organisms in molecular and cell biology, much like Escherichia coli as the model bacterium. Many proteins important in human biology were first discovered by studying their homologs in yeast- proteins including cell cycle proteins, signaling proteins, and protein-processing enzymes.