Cuticular Wax Composition of Wild and Cultivated Northern Berries

Abstract

The outer-most layer of plant surface, the cuticle, consists of epi- and intra-cuticular wax. It protects the plant from dehydration, extreme temperatures and UV radiation, as well as attacks from pests such as molds and bacteria. Berry cuticular waxes are studied to understand the metabolism character (factors affecting wax layer composition in different berry species) and increase the microbial resistance and shelf life of berries. The aim of this study was analysis of the surface wax composition of nine species of wild and cultivated berries from Northern Europe. Cuticular wax analysis were done using gas chromatography-mass spectrometry. A total of 59 different compounds were identified belonging to nine groups of compounds, namely, alkanes, phytosterols, alcohols, fatty acids, phenolic acids, ketones, aldehydes, esters and tocopherols. The analyzed blueberries had the highest amount of wax present on their surface (0.9 mg berry−1), triterpenoids were the main wax constituent in these berries, with up to 62% wax composition. Berry species and varieties were compared based on their surface wax composition—similarities were found between different blueberry varieties; however, other berries showed differences based on concentration and composition of cuticular wax.

Update on Cuticular Wax Biosynthesis and Its Roles in Plant Disease Resistance

“…As the outmost layer exposed to the environment, cuticle covers plant aerial organs and protects plant tissues against enormous environmental challenges such as dehydration, excessive UV radiation, mechanical damage, and even pathogen infections, which have been summarized in prior reviews [ 30 , 31 , 32 , 33 , 34 , 35 , 36 , 37 , 38 , 39 , 40 , 41 , 42 , 43 , 44 , 45 ]. In addition to its protective roles, cuticle also gets involved in regulating plant development [ 33 ].…”

Supercritical Fluid Chromatography—Tandem Mass Spectrometry for Rapid Quantification of Pentacyclic Triterpenoids in Plant Extracts

“…The minor components of berries peel are diols. The presence of main triterpenoids has been reported previously [ 27 , 28 , 39 , 40 , 41 ].…”

Physical and Chemical Traits of Grape Varieties Influence Drosophila suzukii Preferences and Performance

“…Variation in the composition of plant cuticular waxes has been shown before, however, it should be noted that these studies did not or only rarely distinguish between the chemical composition of intra- and epicuticular waxes. So far, research has mostly focused on comparing either the composition of the complete cuticular waxes between varieties within a species ( Pensec et al, 2014 ; Rid et al, 2018 ; Klavins, 2020 ) or the composition of epi- and intracuticular waxes within one variety or species ( Jetter et al, 2006 ; Koch and Ensikat, 2008 ). Within all grape varieties studied here, chemical analyses revealed remarkable differences between epi- and intracuticular wax composition of the berries ( Figures 5 , 6 ), which is likewise known for leaves of several plant species ( Buschhaus and Jetter, 2011 ; Jetter and Riederer, 2016 ).…”