Can pressure-induced cell inactivation be related to cell volume compression? A case study for Saccharomyces cerevisiae

In this paper, emphasis has been put on the relationship between volume compression and cell inactivation for the Saccharomyces cerevisiae strain CBS 1171 submitted to high hydrostatic pressure treatments. The influence of cell dehydration on pressure inactivation was first investigated. Inactivation was found to be strongly limited, or even completely prevented for cells with a water content of 60% w/w or below. Moreover, the volume compression undergone by a single yeast cell was assessed as a function of pressure and hydration conditions using a high-pressure setup for pressure-volume-temperature measurements. Direct measurements of volume compression were performed on cell pellets after…