Home • Rhodosporidium toruloides IFO0559_1
DIC image of R. toruloides under low N conditions.
DIC image of R. toruloides under low N conditions. Note the large lipid bodies inside each cell, containing mostly triglycerides. Image by Jeffrey Skerker
DIC image of R. toruloides teliospores.
DIC image of R. toruloides teliospores. Teliospores remain attached to the mycelium. Teliospores germinate to produce basidiospores, which then germinate again to produce haploid yeast. Image by Jeffrey Skerker
Successful mating of R. toruloides
Successful mating of R. toruloides. Brown teliospores are produced on MYP agar plates after mixing MAT A1 and MAT A2 haploids. Image by Jeffrey Skerker

Rhodosporidium toruloides is a nonpathogenic, red-colored basidiomycetous fungus. It is an oleaginous yeast that can accumulate lipids over 70% of its dry cell weight.
Under low nitrogen growth conditions it accumulates lipids and carotenoids. It is currently being explored as an alternative host for the production of advanced biofuels and chemicals.  In addition, it can serve as a new model system for understanding the genetic control of lipid productivity and for comparative studies with other oleaginous yeast, such as Yarrowia and Lipomyces spp.   The strains IFO0880, IFO0559, IFO1236 were obtained from NBRC culture collection (http://www.nbrc.nite.go.jp).  For further information, please email: [email protected] and [email protected].

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