Phomopsis longanae-induced pericarp browning and disease development of longan fruit can be alleviated or aggravated by regulation of ATP-mediated membrane lipid metabolism

Tert-Butylhydroquinone retards longan fruit deterioration by regulating membrane lipid and energy metabolisms

Longan fruit deteriorates rapidly after harvest, which limits its storability. This study aimed to investigate the effect of tert-butylhydroquinone (TBHQ) on quality maintenance, membrane lipid metabolism, and energy status of longan fruit during 25 °C storage. Compared with control fruit, TBHQ treatment maintained better marketable fruit rate and suppressed activities of phospholipase D (PLD), lipase, and lipoxygenase (LOX), and downregulated expressions of DlPLD, DlLOX, and Dllipase. TBHQ also increased the ratio of unsaturated fatty acids to saturated fatty acids (U/S) and the index of unsaturated fatty acids (IUFA). In addition, higher levels of ATP, ADP, energy charge, NADP+/ NADPH as well as higher activities of H+-ATPase, Ca2+-ATPase and NADK were also observed in TBHQ-treated fruit. These results suggested that TBHQ may maintain postharvest quality of longan fruit by regulating membrane lipid and energy metabolisms.

Effects of TrPLDs on the pathogenicity of Trichothecium roseum infected apple fruit

Phospholipase D plays a critical regulatory role in the pathogenicity of filamentous fungi. However, the molecular mechanism of PLD regulating the pathogenicity of filamentous fungi has not been reported. In this research, the previously constructed TrPLD1 and TrPLD2 (TrPLDs) mutants were used as test strains. Firstly, the function of TrPLDs in Trichothecium roseum was studied. Then, the effects of TrPLDs on the pathogenicity of T. roseum and the quality of the inoculated apples were verified. The results suggested that the deletion of TrPLD1 delayed the spore germination of ΔTrPLD1 and inhibited germ tube elongation by down-regulating the expressions of TrbrlA, TrabaA and TrwetA. By down-regulating the extracellular enzyme-coding gene expressions, ΔTrPLD1 inhibited the degradation of apple fruit cell wall and the change of fatty acid content during infection, reduced the cell membrane permeability and malondialdehyde (MDA) content of apple fruit, thereby maintaining the integrity of fruit cell membrane, and reduced the pathogenicity of ΔTrPLD1 to apple and kept the quality of apple. However, ΔTrPLD2 did not have a significant effect on the infection process of apple fruit by the pathogen.

Thymol application delays the decline of fruit quality in blueberries via regulation of cell wall, energy and membrane lipid metabolism

In this study, we evaluated the potential for exogenous thymol to slow this decline by measuring the effects of thymol application on cell wall, energy, and membrane lipid metabolism. The results showed that thymol application improved the preservation of the total soluble solids, titratable acidity, decay rate, and anthocyanin content, and effectively inhibited the accumulation of O2·-, H2O2, and malondialdehyde in blueberries during storage. Thymol application also effectively maintained fruit firmness, cell wall structure, and energy levels, while delaying the degradation of membrane phospholipids and unsaturated fatty acids during the storage of post-harvest blueberries. Therefore, exogenous thymol can maintain the quality of blueberry fruits by regulating energy and membrane lipid metabolism and reducing cell wall degradation. Thus, thymol-treatment could be a suitable biocontrol agent for maintaining blueberry quality and extending blueberry fruit storage life.

Genome-Wide Identification and Expression Analysis of the SUT Family from Three Species of Sapindaceae Revealed Their Role in the Accumulation of Sugars in Fruits

Sapindaceae is an economically important family of Sapindales and includes many fruit crops. The dominant transport and storage form of photoassimilates in higher plants is sucrose. Sucrose transporter proteins play an irreplaceable role in the loading, transportation, unloading, and distribution of sucrose. A few SUT (sugar transporter) family genes have been identified and characterized in various plant species. In this study, 15, 15, and 10 genes were identified in litchi, longan, and rambutan, respectively, via genome-wide screening. These genes were divided into four subgroups based on phylogenetics. Gene duplication analysis suggested these genes underwent potent purifying selection and tandem duplications during evolution. The expression levels of SlSut01 and SlSut08 were significantly increased in the fruits of Sapindaceae members. The homologs of these two genes in longan and rambutan were also highly expressed in the fruits. The expression pattern of SUTs in three organs of the two varieties was also explored. Subcellular colocalization experiments revealed that the proteins encoded by both genes were present in the plasma membrane. This report provides data for the functional study of SUTs in litchi and provides a basis for screening sugar accumulation-related genes in fruits of Sapindaceae.

DNP and ATP regulate the breakdown occurrence in the pulp of Phomopsis longanae Chi-infected longan fruit through modulating the metabolism of membrane lipid

This study aimed to illustrate how DNP and ATP affected the pulp breakdown occurrence in P. longanae-infected longan and their relationship with the membrane lipid metabolism. Compared with P. longanae-inoculated samples, the pulp of DNP-treated P. longanae-infected longan exhibited higher cellular membrane permeability, breakdown index, activities of PI-PLC, PLD, PC-PLC, LOX, and lipase, and values of SFAs, PA, and DAG, while lower levels of PI, PC, USFAs, IUFA and U/S. However, the opposite findings were observed in ATP-treated P. longanae-infected longan. The data manifested that DNP-increased the pulp breakdown occurrence in P. longanae-inoculated samples was due to the elevated MLDEs activities that reduced the contents of phospholipids (PI, PC) and USFAs, disrupting the cell membrane structures. Nevertheless, ATP decreased the pulp breakdown occurrence in P. longanae-inoculated samples, which was ascribed to the reduced MLDEs activities that raised phospholipids (PI, PC) and USFAs contents, thus maintaining the cell membrane structures.

Preparation and evaluation of a novel chlorine dioxide preservative based on citric acid grafted carboxymethyl chitosan

Instrument-free chlorine dioxide (ClO₂) preservative for fruit and vegetable has gained great attention due to its convenience and safety. In this study, a series of carboxymethyl chitosan (CMC) with citric acid (CA) substituents were synthesized, characterized, and further used to prepare a novel ClO₂ slow-releasing preservative for longan. UV-Vis and FT-IR spectra revealed that CMC-CA#1-3 were successfully prepared. Further potentiometric titration showed that the mass ratios of CA grafted in CMC-CA#1-3 were 0.18:1, 0.42:1, and 0.42:1, respectively. The composition and concentration of ClO₂ slow-releasing preservative were optimized, and the best formulation was as follows: NaClO₂:CMC-CA#2:Na₂SO₄:starch = 3:2:1:1. The maximum ClO₂ release time of this preservative reached >240 h at 5-25 °C, and the maximum release rate always occurred at 12-36 h. Longan treated with 0.15-1.2 g ClO₂ preservative had significantly (p < 0.05) higher L* and a* values but lower respiration rate and total microbial colony counts than the CK group (0 g ClO₂ preservative). After 17 days of storage, longan treated with 0.3 g ClO₂ preservative had the highest L* value of 47.47 and lowest respiration rate of 34.42 mg·kg^-1·h^-1, showing the best pericarp color and pulp quality. This study provided a safe, effective, and simple solution for longan preservation.

Untargeted Metabolomics Using UHPLC-HRMS Reveals Metabolic Changes of Fresh-Cut Potato during Browning Process

Surface browning plays a major role in the quality loss of fresh-cut potatoes. Untargeted metabolomics were used to understand the metabolic changes of fresh-cut potato during the browning process. Their metabolites were profiled by ultra-high performance liquid chromatography coupled with high resolution mass spectrometry (UHPLC-HRMS). Data processing and metabolite annotation were completed by Compound Discoverer 3.3 software. Statistical analysis was applied to screen the key metabolites correlating with browning process. Fifteen key metabolites responsible for the browning process were putatively identified. Moreover, after analysis of the metabolic causes of glutamic acid, linolenic acid, glutathione, adenine, 12-OPDA and AMP, we found that the browning process of fresh-cut potatoes was related to the structural dissociation of the membrane, oxidation and reduction reaction and energy shortage. This work provides a reference for further investigation into the mechanism of browning in fresh-cut products.

The stability of cell structure and antioxidant enzymes are essential for fresh-cut potato browning

In this study, the browning degrees of fresh-cut potatoes of different cultivars were investigated. Fresh-cut potatoes of the 'Huangjin' cultivar exhibited a higher browning index and sensory quality deterioration over time compared with 'Minshu' potatoes. 'Huangjin' exhibited a higher activity of browning-related enzymes such as polyphenol oxidase, tyrosinase, peroxidase, phenylalanine ammonia-lyase, phospholipase D (PLD), and lipoxygenase (LOX) than 'Minshu'. Furthermore, 'Minshu' exhibited lower H₂O₂ and malonaldehyde (MDA) contents, lower membrane lipid degradation and peroxidation, and delayed browning, attributable to its low PLD and LOX activities. The ultrastructure of 'Minshu' cells remained intact 7 h after cutting, while that of 'Huangjin' cells was severely damaged, and 'Minshu' cells exhibited more Golgi complexes and black particles than 'Huangjin' cells. Moreover, 'Huangjin' cells exhibited numerous multivesicular bodies, which were nonexistent in 'Minshu' cells. The results show that 'Minshu' potatoes feature a lower browning-related enzyme activity than 'Huangjin', and a tough cell structure to resist post-cut browning.

Dynamic Change of Carbon and Nitrogen Sources in Colonized Apples by Penicillium expansum

Penicillium expansum is a necrotrophic pathogen, which actively kills host cells and obtains nutrients from dead cells to achieve infection. However, few reports have elucidated the differential levels of carbon and nitrogen sources over increasing distances of the leading edge in fungal colonized fruit tissues during colonization. Our results showed that the highest consumption of sucrose and fructose, as well as the accumulation of glucose, were found in the decayed region of P. expansum-colonized ‘Delicious’ apple fruit compared with the healthy region at the leading edge and the healthy region 6 mm away from the leading edge. As nitrogen sources, the contents of methionine, glutamate, leucine, valine, isoleucine and serine were the lowest in the decayed region compared with the healthy regions during colonization. In addition, the titratable acidity, oxalic acid, citric acid, succinic acid and malic acid showed the highest accumulation in the decayed region compared with the healthy regions. P. expansum colonization induced the accumulation of saturated fatty acids in the decayed region, while the level of unsaturated fatty acids was the lowest. These changes were not observed in the healthy regions. These results indicated that P. expansum kills cells in advance of its colonization in order to obtain the nutrients of the apple tissue from the distal leading tissue of the colonized apple. It is understood that more carbon and nitrogen sources are required for fungal colonization, and a stronger defense response against colonization occurred in the fruit, causing the transit of nutrients from the distal tissue to the infected sites.

Pre- or Post-Harvest Treatment with MeJA Improves Post-Harvest Storage of Lemon Fruit by Stimulating the Antioxidant System and Alleviating Chilling Injury

Cold storage preserves lemon fruit quality; however, it can result in significant chilling injury (CI). The effects of pre- and post-harvest methyl jasmonate (MeJA) treatments at four concentrations (0, 0.1, 0.3, and 0.5 mM) on CI and sensory quality of lemons during 80 d of storage at 7-10 °C were investigated. Both pre- and post-harvest MeJA treatments reduced CI, weight loss (WL) and maintained higher firmness, total soluble solids (TSS), and total acidity (TA) than in the controls. Antioxidant enzyme activities decreased in the control fruit but increased in both pre- and post-harvest MeJA-treated fruit. In addition, phospholipase D (PLD) and lipoxygenase (LOX) activities and malondialdehyde (MDA) content were higher in the control than in the MeJA-treated fruit. Pre-harvest MeJA treatment generally preserved fruit better than post-harvest MeJA treatment, with the best results observed when MeJA was applied at 0.3 mM, which enhanced the antioxidant system of the lemon fruits, thus reducing the post-harvest incidence of chilling injury. These results have important implications for improved fruit quality post-harvest.

Postharvest vibration-induced apple quality deterioration is associated with the energy dissipation system

Transit vibration is a potential risk that may cause fruit deterioration. Regulating energy metabolism is recognized for attenuating fruit abiotic/abiotic stresses. To explore the role of energy metabolism in the response of fruit to vibration stress, this research investigated the effects of exogenous treatment with adenosine triphosphate (ATP) and 2,4-dinitrophenol (DNP) on fruit after simulated vibration stress. The results demonstrated that DNP treatment induced significant energy depletion, which exacerbated the adverse physiological responses induced by vibration stress. In contrast, ATP regulated higher fruit energy levels and significantly alleviated fruit quality deterioration. This is achieved by supplying direct energy substances, maintaining higher energy charges, inhibiting ethylene biosynthesis, elevating the antioxidant system, and suppressing cell oxidative damage. The results demonstrated the positive role of fruit energy metabolism response to vibration stress. Ensuring sufficient energy level may be a promising strategy for controlling vibration-induced adverse physiological responses and a potential method to maintain fruit quality.

ε-Poly-l-Lysine Enhances Fruit Disease Resistance in Postharvest Longans (Dimocarpus longan Lour.) by Modulating Energy Status and ATPase Activity

ε-poly-l-lysine (ε-PL) holds a strong antibacterial property and is widely used for food preservation. However, the application of ε-PL to enhance fruit disease resistance in postharvest longans (Dimocarpus longan Lour.) has not been explored. The objective of this study was to explore the impact of ε-PL treatment on disease occurrence and energy metabolism of longans infected with Phomopsis longanae Chi (P. longanae). It was found that, in comparison with P. longanae-inoculated longans, ε-PL could decrease the fruit disease index and adenosine monophosphate (AMP) content, increase the amounts of adenosine triphosphate (ATP), adenosine diphosphate (ADP), and energy charge, and enhance the activities of adenosine triphosphatase (ATPase) (such as H⁺-, Mg²⁺-, and Ca²⁺-ATPase) in the mitochondria, protoplasm, and vacuole. The results suggest that the higher levels of ATPase activity and energy status played essential roles in disease resistance of postharvest longan fruit. Therefore, the ε-PL treatment can be used as a safe and efficient postharvest method to inhibit the disease occurrence of longan fruit during storage at room temperature.

1-Methylcyclopropene (1-MCP) retards the senescence of Pteridium aquilinum var. latiusculum by regulating the cellular energy status and membrane lipid metabolism

1-MCP is an ethylene inhibitor which can delay the ripening and senescence of fruits and vegetables effectively. Pteridium aquilinum var. Latiusculum (PA) is one of the wild vegetables which is famous and nutrient in China. However, the mechanism of PA preservation treated with 1-MCP has not been reported. Consequently, the effects of postharvest 1-MCP treatment on the changes in quality, energy metabolism, and membrane lipid metabolism of PA were investigated in this study. The results indicated that 1-MCP treatment could effectively inhibit the decreases in firmness, titratable acid (TA) content and the increases in weight loss rate, malondialdehyde (MDA) content, membrane permeability, and membrane lipid metabolism-related enzymes in PA. The cellular energy charge (EC) and the levels of ATP, ATP/ADP, and ATP/AMP, the activities of energy metabolism-related enzymes, NAD+, and NADH were maintained, and the decreases in unsaturated fatty acids and the ratio of unsaturated-to-saturated fatty acids in the membrane of PA cells were effectively retarded by 1-MCP treatment. A positive correlation was observed between cellular ATP levels and the ratio of unsaturated-to-saturated fatty acids, while negative correlations were observed between the ratio of unsaturated-to-saturated fatty acids and both lipid peroxidation and membrane permeability. These results indicated that higher levels of energy status, unsaturated-to-saturated fatty acid ratios, and lipid metabolism in the membrane could preserve the membrane integrity of postharvest PA and effectively extend its shelf life.

Influence of polysaccharide-based edible coatings on enzymatic browning and oxidative senescence of fresh-cut lettuce

Fresh-cut lettuce has a short shelf-life due to enzymatic browning and oxidative senescence. The present study investigated effects of polysaccharide-based edible coatings (alginate, chitosan, and carrageenan) on enzymatic browning and antioxidant defense system of fresh-cut lettuces during cold storage (4°C) for 15 days. The results showed that three coatings could inhibit enzymatic browning through maintaining total phenolics (TP) content and decreasing polyphenol oxidase (PPO) and phenylalanine ammonialyase (PAL) activities. These coatings also reduced phospholipase D (PLD) and lipoxygenase (LOX) activities, lowered malondialdehyde (MDA) content, and enhanced antioxidant enzymes (superoxide dismutase, SOD; peroxidase, POD; catalase, CAT; ascorbate peroxidase, APX) activities. Besides, all coatings positively affected sensory properties of fresh-cut lettuces after 3 days storage. Additionally, among three coating treatments, chitosan coating had the most positive effects on quality of fresh-cut lettuce and was the most suitable coating for retarding enzymatic browning and alleviating membrane oxidative damage. These results indicated that polysaccharide-based edible coatings were helpful to maintain quality, inhibit enzymatic browning, and postpone senescence of fresh-cut lettuce.

Inhibition of downy blight and enhancement of resistance in litchi fruit by postharvest application of melatonin

Litchis are tasty fruit with economic importance. However, the extreme susceptibility of harvested litchis to litchi downy blight caused by Peronophythora litchii leads to compromised quality. This study aimed to study the effects of melatonin on postharvest resistance to P. litchii in 'Feizixiao' litchis. Results showed that melatonin restricted lesion expansion in litchis after P. litchi inoculation. Melatonin enhanced the activities of phenylalanine ammonia-lyase, cinnamate-4-hydroxylase and 4-hydroxycinnamate CoA ligase while promoting the accumulations of phenolics and flavonoids. Nicotinamide adenine dinucleotide phosphate content and glucose-6-phosphate dehydrogenase and 6-phosphogluconic acid dehydrogenase activities were higher in treated fruit than control fruit. Higher energy status along with elevated H⁺-ATPase, Ca²⁺-ATPase, succinate dehydrogenase and cytochrome C oxidase activities were observed in treated fruit. Ultrastructural observation showed reduced damage in mitochondria in treated fruit. The results suggest that melatonin induced resistance in litchis by modulating the phenylpropanoid and pentose phosphate pathways as well as energy metabolism. .

The Involvement of Energy Metabolism and Lipid Peroxidation in Lignin Accumulation of Postharvest Pumelos

Lignification is especially prominent in postharvest pumelo fruit, which greatly impairs their attractiveness and commercial value. This study investigated the energy metabolism and lipid peroxidation and their relationship with accumulated lignin content in juice sacs of “Hongroumiyou” (HR) during 90 d of storage at 25 °C. The results indicated that, the alterations of energy metabolism in juice of sacs of postharvest pumelos was featured by a continuous decline in energy charge and ATP/ADP; an increase in succinic dehydrogenase (SDH) activity before 30 d and increases in activities of cytochrome c oxidase (CCO) and F₀F₁-ATPase before 60 d; but declines in activities of Ca²⁺-ATPase and H⁺-ATPase. Additionally, enhanced contents of H₂O₂, O₂⁻, and –OH scavenging rate; increased malondialdehyde (MDA) content; and transformation of unsaturated fatty acids (USFA) to saturated fatty acids (USFA) and reduced USFA/SFA (U/S) could result in lipid peroxidation and membrane integrity loss. Moreover, correlation analysis showed that lignin accumulation was in close relation to energy metabolism and lipid peroxidation in juice sacs of postharvest pumelos. These results gave evident credence for the involvement of energy metabolism and lipid peroxidation in the lignin accumulation of HR pumelo fruit during postharvest storage.

Cytosolic glyceraldehyde-3-phosphate dehydrogenase 2/5/6 increase drought tolerance via stomatal movement and reactive oxygen species scavenging in wheat

Drought is a major threat to wheat growth and crop productivity. However, there has been only limited success in developing drought-hardy cultivars. This lack of progress is due, at least in part, to a lack of understanding of the molecular mechanisms of drought tolerance in wheat. Here, we evaluated the potential role of three cytosolic glyceraldehyde-3-phosphate dehydrogenases (TaGAPC2/5/6) under drought stress in wheat and Arabidopsis. We found that TaGAPC2/5/6 all positively responded to drought stress via reactive oxygen species (ROS) scavenging and stomatal movement. The results of yeast co-transformation and electrophoretic mobility shift assay showed that TaWRKY33 acted as a direct regulator of TaGAPC2/5/6 genes. The dual luciferase reporter assay indicated that TaWRKY33 positively activated the expression of TaGAPC2/5/6. The results of bimolecular fluorescence complementation and yeast two-hybrid system demonstrated that TaGAPC2/5/6 interacted with phospholipase Dδ (PLDδ). We then demonstrated that TaGAPC2/5/6 positively promoted the activity of TaPLDδ in vitro and in vivo. Furthermore, lower PLDδ activity in RNAi wheat could lead to less PA accumulation, causing higher stomatal aperture sizes under drought stress. In summary, our results establish a new positive regulatory mechanism of TaGAPCs which helps wheat fine-tune their drought responses.

Hydrogen peroxide reduced ATPase activity and the levels of ATP, ADP, and energy charge and its association with pulp breakdown occurrence of longan fruit during storage

The effects of hydrogen peroxide (H₂O₂) on the contents of adenosine triphosphate (ATP), adenosine diphosphate (ADP) and adenosine monophosphate (AMP), the level of energy charge, and the activity of adenosine triphosphatase (ATPase) in pulp of harvested longan fruit, and its association with longan pulp breakdown occurrence were studied. The results showed that, compared to the control longans, H₂O₂-treated longans exhibited a higher index of pulp breakdown, a higher amount of AMP, but lower levels of ATP, ADP and energy charge. H₂O₂-treated longans also exhibited lower activities of Mg²⁺-ATPase, Ca²⁺-ATPase, and H⁺-ATPase in mitochondrial membrane, vacuolar membrane, and plasma membrane as compared to the control longans. Above findings demonstrated that H₂O₂ caused longan pulp breakdown by depleting energy and lowering the ATPase activity, indicating H₂O₂-induced pulp breakdown in harvested longan fruit was due to energy deficit.

Effects of chitosan treatment on the storability and quality properties of longan fruit during storage

Effects of various concentrations of Kadozan (chitosan) treatment on storability and quality properties of harvested 'Fuyan' longans were investigated. Compared to the control samples, Kadozan treated-longans displayed lower fruit respiration rate, lower pericarp cell membrane permeability, pericarp browning index, pulp breakdown index, fruit disease index, and weight loss, but higher rate of commercially acceptable fruit, higher levels of pericarp chlorophyll, carotenoid, anthocyanin, flavonoid and total phenolics, higher amounts of pulp total soluble sugar, sucrose, total soluble solids, and vitamin C. These results revealed Kadozan treatment could increase storability and retain better quality of harvested longan fruit. Among different concentrations of Kadozan, the dilution of 1:500 (V_Kadozan: V_{Kadozan + Water}) showed the best results in storability and maintained the best quality of longans during storage. These findings demonstrated that Kadozan could be a facile and eco-friendly postharvest handling approach for increasing storability and lengthening shelf-life of harvested 'Fuyan' longan fruit.

The role of ROS-induced change of respiratory metabolism in pulp breakdown development of longan fruit during storage

Compared to the control longans, hydrogen peroxide (H₂O₂)-treated longans exhibited higher index of pulp breakdown, higher fruit respiration rate, higher activities of pulp phosphohexose isomerase (PGI), succinate dehydrogenase (SDH), cytochrome C oxidase (CCO), ascorbic acid oxidase (AAO) and polyphenol oxidase (PPO), but lower activity of pulp nicotinamide adenine dinucleotide kinase (NADK). H₂O₂-treated longans also exhibited lower total activities of pulp glucose-6-phosphate dehydrogenase (G-6-PDH) and 6-phosphogluconate dehydrogenase (6-PGDH), lower levels of pulp NADP(H), but higher levels of pulp NAD(H). These data indicated that H₂O₂-stimulated longan pulp breakdown was owing to a decreased proportion of pentose phosphate pathway (PPP), the increased proportions of Embden-Meyerhof-Parnas pathway (EMP), tricarboxylic acid (TCA) cycle and cytochrome pathway (CCP) in total respiratory pathways. These findings further revealed that H₂O₂ could enhance respiration rate, and thus accelerate pulp breakdown occurrence and shorten the shelf life of longan fruit.

Exogenous adenosine triphosphate application retards cap browning in Agaricus bisporus during low temperature storage

Exogenous adenosine triphosphate (ATP) treatment at 0, 250, 500, 750, and 1000 µM retarded cap browning in mushrooms by 0, 34, 26, 51 and 32 %, respectively, during storage at 4 °C for 18 days. Triggering signaling H₂O₂ accumulation arising from elevating NADPH oxidase enzyme activity during 6 days of storage at 4 °C may be pivotal for promoting shikimate dehydrogenase enzyme activity in mushrooms treated with ATP during 18 days of storage at 4 °C. Promoting melatonin accumulation (390 µg kg^-1 FW vs. 160 µg kg^-1 FW) in mushrooms treated with ATP during cold storage may attribute to signaling H₂O₂ accumulation. Higher DPPH scavenging capacity (72 % vs. 65 %) in mushrooms treated with ATP may attribute to higher phenols accumulation arising from higher phenylalanine ammonialyase/polyphenol oxidase enzymes activity concomitant with higher alternative oxidase gene expression during 18 days of storage at 4 °C.

Effect of glycine betaine on chilling injury in relation to energy metabolism in papaya fruit during cold storage

"Zhongbai" papaya fruit were treated with 15 mmol/L glycine betaine (GB) and then refrigerated at 6°C for 40 days to study the influence of GB on chilling injury (CI) and possible mechanism associated with energy metabolism. The results exhibited that GB treatment remarkably reduced the CI severity as indicated by lower CI index during storage. GB treatment lowered electrolyte leakage and malondialdehyde content, which accounted for maintenance of membrane integrity and reduced lipid peroxidation. Moreover, GB treatment improved the energy status as revealed by increased adenosine triphosphate (ATP) level, energy charge, and activities of energy metabolism-related enzymes including mitochondrial membrane H+-adenosine triphosphatase (H+-ATPase) and Ca2+-adenosine triphosphatase (Ca2+-ATPase), succinate dehydrogenase (SDH), and cytochrome C oxidase (CCO). The results indicate that enhanced chilling tolerance in papaya fruit by GB treatment during cold storage might be ascribed to improved energy status in association with increased activities of energy metabolism-related enzymes.

The Changes in Metabolisms of Membrane Lipids and Phenolics Induced by Phomopsis longanae Chi Infection in Association with Pericarp Browning and Disease Occurrence of Postharvest Longan Fruit

This study investigated the changes in metabolisms of membrane lipids and phenolics caused by Phomopsis longanae Chi infection in association with pericarp browning and fruit disease occurrence of postharvest longans. Compared with the uninoculated-longans, the longans inoculated by P. longanae exhibited higher cellular membrane permeability; higher PLD, lipase, and LOX activities; and higher levels of saturated fatty acids (SFAs) and phosphatidic acid but lower levels of phosphatidylinositol, phosphatidylcholine, and unsaturated fatty acids (USFAs). Additionally, the longans inoculated by P. longanae showed higher activities of POD and PPO but a lower amount of total phenolics. These findings suggested that infection of P. longanae enhanced activities of PLD-, lipase-, and LOX- stimulated degradations of membrane lipids and USFAs, which destroyed the integrity of the cell membrane structure, resulting in enzymatic browning by contact of phenolics with POD and PPO, and resulting in reduction of resistance to pathogen infection and accordingly accelerated disease occurrence of postharvest longan fruit.

Lasiodiplodia theobromae (Pat.) Griff. & Maubl. reduced energy status and ATPase activity and its relation to disease development and pericarp browning of harvested longan fruit

This study aimed to investigate the effects of Lasiodiplodia theobromae (Pat.) Griff. & Maubl (L. theobromae) inoculation on the energy status and activity of adenosine triphosphatase (ATPase) during L. theobromae-induced disease development and pericarp browning of harvested 'Fuyan' longan (Dimocarpus longan Lour. cv. Fuyan) fruit. The results showed that, compared to the control longans, L. theobromae-inoculated longans displayed higher indices of fruit disease and pericarp browning, lower pericarp ATP and ADP contents, higher AMP content, lower level of energy charge, as well as lower activities of Ca²⁺-ATPase, Mg²⁺-ATPase and H⁺-ATPase in membranes of plasma, vacuole, and mitochondria. These results indicated that the infection of L. theobromae reduced energy status and ATPase activities, caused ions disorder, damaged the integrity and function of the cell and organelles including vacuole and mitochondria in pericarp of longan fruit, which contributed to L. theobromae-promoted disease development and pericarp browning of harvested longan fruit during storage.