Ecology
What are two yeasts that have been found living between people's toes?
Yeast
Yeast Skin flora Protosteloid Beer style Homeobox
Yeast-Ecology Skin_flora-Fungal Protosteloid-Ecology Beer_style-Types Homeobox-Diversity
Yeasts are very common in the environment, and are often isolated from sugar-rich materials. Examples include naturally occurring yeasts on the skins of fruits and berries (such as grapes, apples, or peaches), and exudates from plants (such as plant saps or cacti). Some yeasts are found in association with soil and insects. The ecological function and biodiversity of yeasts are relatively unknown compared to those of other microorganisms. Yeasts, including "Candida albicans", "Rhodotorula rubra", "Torulopsis" and "Trichosporon cutaneum", have been found living in between people's toes as part of their skin flora. Yeasts are also present in the gut flora of mammals and some insects and even deep-sea environments host an array of yeasts. An Indian study of seven bee species and 9 plant species found 45 species from 16 genera colonise the nectaries of flowers and honey stomachs of bees. Most were members of the "Candida" genus; the most common species in honey stomachs was "Dekkera intermedia" and in flower nectaries, "Candida blankii". Yeast colonising nectaries of the stinking hellebore have been found to raise the temperature of the flower, which may aid in attracting pollinators by increasing the evaporation of volatile organic compounds. A black yeast has been recorded as a partner in a complex relationship between ants, their mutualistic fungus, a fungal parasite of the fungus and a bacterium that kills the parasite. The yeast has a negative effect on the bacteria that normally produce antibiotics to kill the parasite, so may affect the ants' health by allowing the parasite to spread.
A study of the area between toes in 100 young adults found 14 different genera of fungi. These include yeasts such as "Candida albicans", "Rhodotorula rubra", "Torulopsis" and "Trichosporon cutaneum", dermatophytes (skin living fungi) such as "Microsporum gypseum", and "Trichophyton rubrum" and nondermatophyte fungi (opportunistic fungi that can live in skin) such as "Rhizopus stolonifer", "Trichosporon cutaneum", "Fusarium", "Scopulariopsis brevicaulis", "Curvularia", "Alternaria alternata", "Paecilomyces", "Aspergillus flavus" and "Penicillium" species. A study by the National Human Genome Research Institute in Bethesda, Maryland, researched the DNA of human skin fungi at 14 different locations on the body. These were the ear canal, between the eyebrows, the back of the head, behind the ear, the heel, toenails, between the toes, forearm, back, groin, nostrils, chest, palm, and the crook of the elbow. The study showed a large fungal diversity across the body, the richest habitat being the heel, which hosts about 80 species of fungi. By way of contrast, there are some 60 species in toenail clippings and 40 between the toes. Other rich areas are the palm, forearm and inside the elbow, with from 18 to 32 species. The head and the trunk hosted between 2 and 10 each. 
Protosteloid amoebae are typically found on dead plant matter, including stems and leaves of herbaceous plants, stems and leaves of grasses, bark of living trees, decaying wood and other types of dead plant matter. Protosteloid amoebae are found on dead plant matter that has fallen on the ground, on dead plant parts that are still hanging in the air and on dead parts of plants that are submerged in a pond. They have also been detected on the petals of living flowers and on living tree leaves. Since protosteloid amoebae eat bacteria, yeasts, and fungal spores in the laboratory, it is thought that they also do this in nature. They are thus thought to be predators in the decomposer community. 
Yeasts that ferment at warmer temperatures, usually between 60 and 75 degrees Fahrenheit, form a layer of foam on the surface of the fermenting beer, which is why they are referred to as top-fermenting yeasts. Yeasts that ferment at considerably lower temperatures, around 50 degrees Fahrenheit, have the ability to process a chemical compound known as raffinose, a complex sugar created during fermentation. These yeasts collect at the bottom of the fermenting beer and are therefore referred to as bottom-fermenting yeast. The majority of beer in production today is fermented in this way and is called lager. Two other types of beer styles include beer of spontaneous fermentation and beers of mixed origin. Beers of spontaneous fermentation are mainly produced in Belgium using wild strains of yeast. These types of beers are often referred to as Lambic. Beers of mixed origin include Altbier and Kölsch. 
The homeobox genes were first found in the fruit fly "Drosophila melanogaster" and have subsequently been identified in many other species, from insects to reptiles and mammals. Homeobox genes were previously only identified in bilateria but more recently cnidaria have also been found to contain homeobox domains and the "missing link" in the evolution between the two has been identified. Homeobox genes have even been found in fungi, for example the unicellular yeasts, and in plants. 