Yeast Genetic Reasearch

Hey guys! I am getting ready to graduate with my degree in cell and molecular biology, and I'm looking towards my future. I am currently trying to get a job at a local craft brewery in their lab doing quality control, but I'm also thinking about graduate school. I have a huge interest in yeast genetics and how it might contribute to industrial brewing. Anyone have any idea what school my facilitate my desire to further study this subject? I've got big ideas and big dreams, so I want to make sure I do my best to understand brewing as much as possible. Thanks for your help!

Cheers,
Ben

You should hit up Chris White from White Labs for some suggestions. From the sounds of it, he's got the job you want and he's pretty approachable.

While I think MalFet's suggestion an excellent one I would also suggest meeting with your undergraduate adviser.

I just sent an email to white labs, and I have already met with my advisor. There is one huge glaring problem with my department, all of the teachers do large research projects, which takes their attention. They also serve as advisors, and are not really willing to do much research to help me. All my professors have been very supportive, but not very helpful. I guess I just wanted to see if anyone on HBT knew anyone who might actually do research of this nature and point me in the direction of a university or program.

Thank you for the suggestion about white labs.

As of now, UC Davis is at the top of my list for a graduate program in food science.

Cheers,
Ben

My impression is that the average brewery "lab" isn't a lab in the sense you are thinking. A brewery Lab is there more for QC/QA purposes, so it run a few basic tests, over and over, and that's it. Anything more extensive than that, and they contract that work out to the experts....guys like Chris White for example. On the other hand, a really big brewery (this budwiser) might have a more extensive lab, since at the scale they are brewing, it is cheaper to do the tests in-house.

I'm also trained in cell/molecular biology, so I can give you some insight into some of your other career questions....feel free to PM me so we don't take the post too far off comment.

+2 to MalFets comment of contacting Chris White...

PM Randar. I believe his SWMBO currently works in the yeast genetics field. He may be able to offer some advice.

Jbbloom1989 said:

There is one huge glaring problem with my department, all of the teachers do large research projects, which takes their attention. They also serve as advisors, and are not really willing to do much research to help me. All my professors have been very supportive, but not very helpful.

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As someone who is now the busy researcher/teacher/advisor but was once the student more supported than helped, I can sympathize with both sides on this one. I've had plenty of students come in with very cool, very specific ideas about what they want to do, and unless it happens to be the same very specific thing that I do it's tough to give guidance.

broadbill said:

My impression is that the average brewery "lab" isn't a lab in the sense you are thinking. A brewery Lab is there more for QC/QA purposes, so it run a few basic tests, over and over, and that's it. Anything more extensive than that, and they contract that work out to the experts....guys like Chris White for example. On the other hand, a really big brewery (this budwiser) might have a more extensive lab, since at the scale they are brewing, it is cheaper to do the tests in-house.

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+1 on this. I think the bigger question is less where you should get training and more what you'd like to do when you get done with it. There are plenty of fantastic microbiology programs, and I suspect you'd get an excellent education at all of them. Based on my reading of Chris White's yeast book, I suspect that a lot of microbreweries don't have yeast labs, even rudimentary ones. You could certainly pursue work at any of the bigger yeast production facilities (Danstar, etc.), or in any of the macro brew houses. Academic jobs might exist as well, though I don't have any particular knowledge about that.

I think where I would like to take this is to get the training and education to allow me to better understand this topic. Then, in the future, potentially take my skills to a craft brewery or a yeast lab like white labs. I would love to see a shift in emphasis onto yeast in brewing and remind people that yeast is the real reason why beer is wonderful. Potentially make a more yeast centric line of beers! But I want to get a better knowledge of the subject matter to make myself a more viable candidate to employers. I guess I'm just trying to do something outside the box, and be an individual. Im loving the advice, thanks for everyones input!

Cheers,
Ben

Do a literature search of topics you find interesting. Take note of the institution(s) where the authors who published the articles work. Apply there.

I don't know how well PubMed covers this subject but I'm sure your school would have some Literature search engines that will do a lot better job than Google, etc. You might find a Librarian who would be very happy to help you with this.

broadbill said:

My impression is that the average brewery "lab" isn't a lab in the sense you are thinking. A brewery Lab is there more for QC/QA purposes, so it run a few basic tests, over and over, and that's it. Anything more extensive than that, and they contract that work out to the experts....guys like Chris White for example. On the other hand, a really big brewery (this budwiser) might have a more extensive lab, since at the scale they are brewing, it is cheaper to do the tests in-house.

I'm also trained in cell/molecular biology, so I can give you some insight into some of your other career questions....feel free to PM me so we don't take the post too far off comment.

+2 to MalFets comment of contacting Chris White...

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Add another +1 on that. Also, check to see if the Brewing Science Institute folks would be willing to talk. Worth a shot, anyway.

A little off topic (sort of), but UC Davis is an excellent school. Should you pursue the graduate degree, I wish you the best! California is still home to me.

Getting in contact with UC Davis and Lund University in Sweden! Really excited!

If you are interested in research you really are going to want to go to grad school. I worked for two years in QA/QC labs in food and nutraceuticals with the hope that I would be able to get in on some cool research but without at least a MS you are going to be stuck being nothing more than a number generating lab monkey.

I quit my job and am now in my first year of my PhD program and (though considerably poorer) way happier than I was at anytime in my career.

That is my $0.02

If you want genetics, yeast is a powerful tool. I would say not to limit yourself the little fungi. There is a lot of cool stuff going on in the genetics world way beyond making a better tasting beer

There is also a fermentation science program at Oregon State University. I'm not sure if they have a graduate program specifically in fermentation science, but I would bet they do. There are numerous microbreweries in the pacific northwest, so it might be worth looking into.

UC Davis is incredible. They do everything.

Jbbloom1989 said:

Getting in contact with UC Davis and Lund University in Sweden! Really excited!

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I don't know much about them but the Siebel Institute does alot with yeast.
http://www.siebelinstitute.com/ Looks like campus' in Chicago, Montreal and Munich?

Maybe they have some suggestions if nothing else.

I do research in yeast genetics. That said, so do countless other people. Virtually every big biology department on earth will have at least one lab (and probably several) doing yeast genetics research -- it's a model organism, after all. You really shouldn't have any trouble finding one.

The advice given earlier is fairly good. Find some papers you think are good. Look at where they were published. Apply there.