Introduction of DNA into Yeast Cells

The most commonly used yeast transformation protocol is the lithium acetate procedure (described here). It is reasonably fast and provides a transformation efficiency of 10(5) to 10(6) transformants/microg. This efficiency rivals that achieved for most, but not all, strains with the more difficult and time-consuming spheroplast procedure presented here. However, the fastest and easiest of the transformation methods is electroporation, as described in this unit. For a number of strains, electroporation offers the highest transformation efficiency, and may prove especially useful with limiting quantities of transforming DNA. Unlike the lithium acetate procedure, however, electroporation saturates at low DNA levels, restricting its general utility.