Montpellier Scientific Community



Sciences for Oenology (SPO)

Director: Jean-Marie Sablayrolles
Website :
Research area
The Sciences for Oenology (SPO) research unit covers a number of research themes including: (1) the integrative biology of industrial yeasts, and the control of alcoholic fermentation, (2) the biosynthesis, structure, physico-chemistry and interactions of phenolic compounds Close interactions with Pech Rouge Experimental Unit (UE 999) makes it possible to conduct research projects at pilot and pre-industrial scales (fermentation, fractioning of grape components, stabilization of wine...) and forms a unique structure in terms of innovation and transfer.

Research highlights
  • Genetic bases of yeast adaptation and technological traits, system biology and metabolic engineering of industrial yeast strains
  • Modeling and control of alcoholic fermentation
  • Interactions and molecular assemblies involving polyphenols and their effect on the sensory attributes (colour, astringency) and colloïdal stability of wines
Staff profile
Research Org.
Researchers
Professors
Research Eng.

Techn. & Admin Staff
PhD
UM1, Mtp SupAgro, INRA
16
8
7
33
12
Research teams
  • Polyphenols
  • Microbiology
Platforms and other tools
  • Structural analysis of Polyphenols platform
  • Volatile compounds analysis
  • Sensory analysis
  • Biotechnology
  • Knowledge Management
Most important international partnerships
AWRI, Adelaide, Australia (E. Waters)
UC Davis, Ca, USA (A. Waterhouse)
Dept of Chemistry, University of New Orleans, USA, (R.B. Cole)
Université Catholique de Louvain, Belgium (D. Dochain)
Institute of Molecular Systems Biology, Zurich, Suisse (U. Sauer)

Representative publications
1. Alexandre H, Ansanay-Galeote V, Dequin S, et B Blondin.(2001) Global gene expression during short-term ethanol stress in Saccharomyces cerevisiae FEBS Letters 498 :98-103. Citations : 146.

2. Boze H, Marlin T, Durand D, Perez, J, Vernhet, A, Canon, F, Sarni-Manchado, P, Cheynier, V, Cabane, B. (2010). Proline-rich salivary proteins have extended conformations. Biophys. J. 99, 656-665. (IF : 4,39)

3. Cadiere A, Camarasa C, Julien A. and Dequin S. (2011) Evolutionary engineered Saccharomyces cerevisiae wine yeast strains with increased in vivo flux through the pentose phosphate pathway. Metab Eng. Feb 21. (IF: 4.7)

4. Coq S, Souquet J.M, Meudec E, Cheynier V, Hattenschwiler S. (2010) Interspecific variation in leaf litter tannins drives decomposition In a tropical rainforest of French Guiana.. Ecology, 91, 2080-2091 (IF : 4,41)

5. Damon C, Laurent Vallon, Sabine Zimmermann, Muhammad Z. Haider, Virginie Galeote, Sylvie Dequin, Patricia Luis, Laurence Fraissinet-Tachet, and Roland Marmeisse (2011) A novel fungal family of oligopeptide transporters identified by functional metatranscriptomics of soil eukaryotes. ISME J, In press. (IF: 6.3)

6. F. Remize, J. L. Roustan, J. M. Sablayrolles, P. Barre, and S. Dequin. Glycerol. (1999). Overproduction by Engineered Saccharomyces cerevisiae Wine Yeast Strains Leads to Substantial Changes in By-Product Formation and to a Stimulation of Fermentation Rate in Stationary Phase. Appl. Env. Microbiol. 65.143-149. Citations 112.

7. Fulcrand H, Benabdeljalil C, Rigaud J, Cheynier, V and Moutounet M. 1998. A new class of wine pigments generated by reaction between pyruvic acid and grape anthocyanins. Phytochemistry, 47, 1401-1407. Citations : 206

8. Galeote V, Bigey F, Beyne E, Novo M., Legras JL, Casaregola S., Dequin S. (2011) Amplification of a Z. bailii DNA segment in wine yeast genomes by extrachromosomal circular formation. PLos ONE 6:e17872 (IF: 4.351)

9. Gomez C, Terrier N, Torregrosa L, Vialet S., Fournier-Level A., Verries C., Souquet J.-M., Mazauric J. P., Klein M., Cheynier V., Ageorges A. (2009) Grapevine MATE-Type Proteins Act as Vacuolar H+-Dependent Acylated Anthocyanin Transporters. Plant Physiol., 150 (1), 402-415. (IF : 6,98)

10. Guillaume C, Delobel P, Sablayrolles J.M. and Blondin B. 2007. Molecular Basis of Fructose Utilization by the Wine Yeast Saccharomyces cerevisiae: a Mutated HXT3 Allele Enhances Fructose Fermentation. Applied and Environmental Microbiology, 73: 2432-2439. (IF: 4,00)

11. Hugueney P, Provenzano S, Verries C, Ferrandino A, Meudec E, Batelli G, Merdinoglu D, Cheynier V, Schubert A, Ageorges A. (2009) A novel cation-dependent O-methyltransferase involved in anthocyanin methylation in grapevine. Plant Physiol. 150, 2057-2070. (IF : 6,98)

12. Mané C., Sommerer N., Yalcin T., Cheynier V., Cole R.B., Fulcrand H. (2007) Assessment of the molecular weight distribution of tannin fractions through MALDI-TOF MS analysis of protein-tannin complexes. Anal. Chem., 79, 2239 - 2248. (IF: 5,21)

13. Novo, M., Bigey, F., Beyne, E., Galeote, V., Gavory, F., Mallet, S., Cambon, B., Legras, J., Wincker, P., Casaregola, S., and Dequin, S. (2009). Eukaryote-to-eukaryote gene transfer events revealed by the genome sequence of the wine yeast S. cerevisiae EC1118. Proc. Natl. Acad. Sci.U.S.A. 106.: 16333-16338. (IF : 9,43)

14. Poncet-Legrand C, Cabane B, Bautista-Ortin AB, Carrillo, S. Fulcrand H., Perez J., Vernhet A. (2010) Tannin oxidation : infra-versus intermolecular reactions. Biomacromol., 11, 2376-2386 (IF : 4,5)

15. Pourcel L., Routaboul JM., Cheynier V., Lepiniec L., Debeaujon I. (2007) Flavonoid oxidation in plants: from biochemical properties to physiological functions. Trends in Plant Science, 12, 29-36. IF : 9,883
Total annual budget
2008 2009 2010
Total annual budget
5 187 035 5 114 689 5 230 343
External contracts:
688 012
563 775
907 914
ANR
54 578
118 958
EU
104 477
109 652
73 686
Private sector
316 537 252 363 406 674
Others