The present investigation is an attempt to isolate and identify the yeasts used by some local aborigines of Arunachal Pradesh and observe their behaviour under in-vitro conditions. Interestingly, all the isolates have shown a preference of growth at neutral pH; a character not usually observed in yeasts who generally prefer an acidic medium for growth. The results obtained in the present findings suggest that all the isolates are different in terms of their physiological or biochemical

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... s. One important aspect of the studies was the successful isolation of pure cultures from a consortium whose contents were previously unknown (Sarma, 2002) . Protein profiling of the isolates have revealed that the isolates are indeed variants at the genetic level as was evident from expression of whole cell proteins. The isolates might therefore be mutagenic variants, which arose during segregation through time immemorial. It can be predicted that careful identification and selection of yeasts from starter cultures employed in traditional brewing in northeast India can yield industrially important and beneficial yeast strains for the exploitation and benefit of mankind.