Cell disruption or lysis is a crucial step to obtain cellular components for various biological studies. We subjected different concentrations of Candida albicans to 5, 10, 15 and 20 cycles of disruption. The degree of cell lysis was observed using light microscopy and the yields obtained were measured and analysed. The optimum extraction with 1 x 10(10) yeast cells/ml was achieved after 5 cycles of disruption with 1.0 mm diameter glass beads at 5,000 rpm. Approximately 80% of the cells were lysed and the protein yield was 6,000 microg/ml. SDS-PAGE analysis revealed approximately 25 distinct protein bands with molecular weights ranging from 8 kDa to 220 kDa. We conclude that this mechanical disruption of fungal cells is a rapid, efficient and inexpensive technique for extracting whole cell proteins from yeast cells.