Full Length Research Paper

Genetic diversity of yeasts from Ragi tape “starter for cassava and glutinous rice fermentation from Indonesia” Internal Transcribed Spacer (ITS) region

Tati Barus* and Steffysia

Faculty of Biotechnology, Atma Jaya Catholic University of Indonesia, Jalan Jenderal Sudirman No.51, Jakarta 12930

*Corresponding Author E-mail: tati.barus@atmajaya.ac.id

Accepted August 26, 2013

Abstract

Tape is a traditional food from Indonesia made from cassava tubers (Manihot utilisima) or glutinous rice (Oriza sativa glutinosa) as the alternative substrate. It can only be produced through a fermentation process mostly done by yeast and bacteria- therefore, yeast determine the quality of tape largely. In this study, yeasts were isolated from Ragi tape and subjected to diversity using restriction fragment length polymorphism (RFLP) on the 5.8S rRNA gene and the two ITS regions. A total of 35 yeast isolates were isolated from eight different types of Ragi tape. The results of this research showed that not all Ragi tape sold in the market contain yeast. Of the 12 different types of Ragi tape, only eight of them contained yeast. Other 35 yeast isolates were selected from eight types of Ragi tape for PCR-RFLP analysis. According to the digestion profiles of RFLP, 35 yeast isolates were clustered into 4 groups, as follow: group 1 consisted of 27 isolate (77%), group 2 six isolates (17%), group 3 and group 4 one isolate (3%), respectively. Isolates of group 1 and group 2 were similar to Pichia jadinii and Pichia kudriavzevii,

Keywords: Ragi tape, Yeast, PCR-RFLP