Sugar Slump: Higher Concentrations of Glucose Lead to Eventual Max Out in Respiration Rates of Yeast

Abstract

Fermentation, or the breakdown of substances without the use of oxygen, is an extremely commercially applicable biochemical process due to its ability to yield alcoholic byproducts. Although it is clear that different environments result in different respiration rates within cells, it has yet to be determined why exactly this occurs. We proposed that solutions with higher concentrations of glucose would produce more CO2 because of the large amount of energy that glucose provides for cellular respiration. We conducted five trials comparing the rate of respiration in different solutions by adding them to activated yeast and then tracking their CO2 production in parts per million per minute over a period of eight minutes. Interestingly enough, the solution with the greatest concentration of glucose showed a max out in respiration rate, which was not what we expected to observe. We believe this new approach to be of interest to brewery employees seeking information regarding methods of speeding up the fermentation process.