Terminal Restriction Fragment Length Polymorphism as a Tool for Characterizing the Microbial Ecology of Beer and Wine

Terminal restriction fragment length polymorphism (TRFLP) presents a powerful, high-throughput tool for profiling the microbial communities of beer, wine, and other fermentations. The first chapter of this thesis discusses the different needs for community analysis in the beer/wine industries and fermentation research and considers the value of a number of molecular methods currently available (including TRFLP) to meet these ends. Chapter two describes the generation and validation of a yeast TRFLP database, enabling accurate identification of fermentation-relevant yeasts using this technique. Chapter three reports the use of TRFLP to characterize both yeast and bacterial communities of American spontaneous ale (ASA) over the course of three years of fermentation. This work demonstrates the sensitivity of TRFLP and its utility for studying fermentation systems, including its adaption for large-scale, time-based or multivariate studies.