ABSTRACT
Protoplast fusion is industrially significant because it represents a substantial technical advance related to the recombination of genetic material. The use of protoplast fusion to circumvent barriers to cell fusion has implications for genetic studies in both research and development in the fermentation industry. In research in the fermentation industry, investigators are usually interested in finding new pharmacologically active molecules. There are technical advantages and disadvantages to various protoplast fusion protocols. Such protocols include: fusion of protoplasts between closely related strains of the same species, fusion of protoplasts between distantly related strains of the same species or between different species, and fusion of protoplasts as an aid to DNA uptake into a given strain. The idea of genetic duplication as an aid to strain improvement is a perennial one, the concept being that a rate-limiting step exists somewhere which, if duplicated, could be overcome.
