Executive Summary : | The agricultural sector is the primary source of protein for human consumption, but its production is vulnerable to environmental conditions. single Cell Protein (sCP) production has evolved as an excellent alternative, with yeast being the preferred source due to its presence of amino acids, fatty acids, and β-glucan. Yeasts are more familiar to humans in foods like bread and beverages, and their commercial value is linked to their protein content, which can account for up to 50% of the dry weight. Yeasts have advantages over other microbes due to their larger size, lower nucleic acid content, long history of use, high vitamin content, and ability to grow on low pH substrates. They also have better capacity to assimilate sugar substrates and have faster growth rates and high levels of osmotolerance, making them efficient for mass production of sCPs. Yeasts can produce antiviral compounds, which can be exploited pharmacologically. Probiotics, symbiotic microbes providing health benefits, have antioxidant and immune-stimulating properties from yeast extracts. β-glucans from yeasts have been found to control cholesterol and diabetes, and studies on their effects on macrophage function can be used in treating various diseases. Mangrove sediments are crucial habitats for identifying potent yeast strains with novel and efficient bioactive metabolites with a wide range of pharmacological, industrial, and bioremediation properties. The proposed study aims to isolate and identify functionally efficient yeast strains, estimate their nutritional quality, extract their secondary metabolites, characterize their properties, screen their antiviral properties, and sequence the whole genome of the potent strain. |