Scheffersomyces segobiensis is a budding yeast species first isolated from the larva of the flatheaded pine borer insect Calcophora mariana massilensis on Scotch pine in Spain. This species is notable for its ability to ferment xylose. Sequencing its genome, as well as the genomes of other xylose fermenting yeasts, will enable a better understanding of how this trait evolved within the budding yeasts, and may shed light on how to engineer xylose fermentation into other yeast species especially for biofuel production from hemicellulose.
References:
Kurtzman C., Fell J.W., Boekhout T. The Yeasts a Taxonomic Study. 5th ed. Elsevier 2011.