Dr Jin Zhang
Grant-Funded Researcher (A)
School of Agriculture, Food and Wine
Faculty of Sciences, Engineering and Technology
Eligible to supervise Masters and PhD (as Co-Supervisor) - email supervisor to discuss availability.
Dr Jin Zhang is a Postdoctoral Researcher within the School of Agriculture, Food, and Wine, focusing her research on understanding the performance of yeast and their interactions within challenging environments, particularly evident in winemaking processes. Her projects are centred on the identification and characterisation of various yeast species and the genes responsible for their unique properties. Utilising high-throughput screening methods of yeast collections, including environmental isolates and mutant libraries, Dr Zhang aims to identify genetic differences between strains that correlate with specific phenotypes. Her studies are aimed at unravelling the adaptive mechanisms that enable yeast to thrive in grape must and successfully complete alcoholic fermentation. This valuable insight is then applied to guide strain development, leading to isolate novel strains possessing desirable oenological traits.With over a decade of experience in the field of wine microbiology, Dr Zhang has been involved in numerous fermentation and molecular biology projects. In 2014, she completed her PhD in wine microbiology, focusing on the investigation and characterisation of highly nitrogen-efficient wine yeast strains. Since then, she has undertaken projects ranging from high-throughput fermentations to assess new grape cultivars, to exploring microbial cell-cell signalling mechanisms during wine fermentation and their impact on population dynamics and fermentation performance. Additionally, Dr Zhang endeavours to isolate novel yeast strains from diverse environments to uncover their biological properties and their potential applications in the industry.
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Appointments
Date Position Institution name 2023 - 2023 Casual Acdemic Activity (Non-Teaching) University of Adelaide 2023 - 2023 Casual Acdemic Activity (Non-Teaching) University of Adelaide 2018 - 2022 Casual Research Technician CSIRO 2016 - ongoing Post-doc Researcher The University of Adelaide -
Language Competencies
Language Competency Chinese (Mandarin) Can read, write, speak, understand spoken and peer review English Can read, write, speak, understand spoken and peer review -
Education
Date Institution name Country Title 2010 - 2014 The University of Adelaide Australia PhD 2007 - 2009 North West Agriculture and Forestry University China Master of Science 2003 - 2007 North West Agriculture and Forestry University China Bachelor of Engineering -
Certifications
Date Title Institution name Country 2022 First Aider Certification Real Response Australia 2022 Fire Warden Certification Chubb Australia 2018 Advanced Wine Spirit Education Trust Certificate WSET United Kingdom 2011 Intermediate Wine Spirit Education Trust Certificate WSET United Kingdom -
Research Interests
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Journals
Year Citation 2025 Cheng, Y., Geng, S., Zhang, J., Zhao, X., Jiang, J., Liang, Y., . . . Song, Y. (2025). A comprehensive study on fermentation and aroma contributions of Torulaspora delbrueckii in diverse wine varieties: Insights from pure and co-fermentation studies. Food Research International, 199, 13 pages.
Scopus2 WoS2 Europe PMC12025 Jiang, J., Yu, H., Lei, X., Yang, H., Ye, D., Zhang, J., . . . Liu, Y. (2025). Impact of combined multiple stressors on Saccharomyces cerevisiae and mapping of the associated QTLs. Food Innovation and Advances, 4(3), 342-351.
2023 Gardner, J. M., Alperstein, L., Walker, M. E., Zhang, J., & Jiranek, V. (2023). Modern yeast development: finding the balance between tradition and innovation in contemporary winemaking. FEMS Yeast Research, 23, foac049-1-foac049-12.
Scopus10 WoS9 Europe PMC32022 Huang, R., Shen, L., Yu, H., Jiang, J., Qin, Y., Liu, Y., . . . Song, Y. (2022). Evaluation of rain-shelter cultivation mode effects on microbial diversity during Cabernet Sauvignon (Vitis vinifera L.) maturation in Jingyang, Shaanxi, China. Food Research International, 156, 1-17.
Scopus17 WoS17 Europe PMC82021 Walker, M. E., Zhang, J., Sumby, K. M., Lee, A., Houlès, A., Li, S., & Jiranek, V. (2021). Sulfate transport mutants affect hydrogen sulfide and sulfite production during alcoholic fermentation. Yeast, 38(6), 367-381.
Scopus9 WoS7 Europe PMC32021 Xu, Z., Walker, M. E., Zhang, J., Gardner, J. M., Sumby, K. M., & Jiranek, V. (2021). Exploring the diversity of bacteriophage specific to Oenococcus oeni and Lactobacillus spp and their role in wine production. Applied Microbiology and Biotechnology, 105(23), 8575-8592.
Scopus7 WoS5 Europe PMC52020 Gardner, J., Walker, M., Zhang, J., Van Holst, N., & Jiranek, V. (2020). Searching new frontiers for winemaking microbes with unusual and useful activities. The Australian & New Zealand grapegrower & winemaker, 680, 87-88. 2018 Zhang, J., Astorga, M., Gardner, J., Walker, M., Grbin, P., & Jiranek, V. (2018). Disruption of the cell wall integrity gene ECM33 results in improved fermentation by wine yeast. Metabolic Engineering, 45, 255-264.
Scopus20 WoS19 Europe PMC12
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Current Higher Degree by Research Supervision (University of Adelaide)
Date Role Research Topic Program Degree Type Student Load Student Name 2023 Co-Supervisor Novel microbes from Australian plants: Characterisation and industrial potential Doctor of Philosophy Doctorate Full Time Miss Tea Knezevic 2021 Co-Supervisor Exploring the diversity of bacteriophage in wine production Doctor of Philosophy Doctorate Full Time Miss Zhecun Xu
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