Effect of heat treatment on the quality and energy metabolism in “Golden Delicious” apple fruit

Abstract

The effect of heat treatment on fruit firmness and related enzymes, acidity and related enzymes, and energy metabolism on postharvest apple fruit was investigated. Results showed that heat treatment prevented softening at the early stage and maintained acidity. Compared with the control, heat treatment markedly inhibited the transcript level of MdcyME1–3 but improved the transcript level of MdPG3 and MdGAL1, thus heat‐treated fruit exhibited higher activity of polygalacturonase (PG) and β‐galactosidase (β‐Gal). Moreover, levels of energy charge in heat‐treated fruit were significantly higher than that in the control fruit. These results suggested that β‐Gal played an important role in apple fruit softening at the later storage, and heat treatment maintained acidity and energy metabolism while enhanced the activity of cell wall enzymes. Practical applications To reveal the mechanism of energy metabolism affecting fruit softening and change in fruit acidity, the enzyme activity and gene expression of apple fruits after heat treatment were studied. By comparing the heat treatment group with the control group, this study successfully explained the genomic mechanism controlling apple fruit acidity and softening in the fruit mature period at high level of energy charge, found key cell wall enzymes and candidate genes, and supplied theoretical guidance for maintaining the fruit quality of “Golden Delicious” fruit.

Influence of Hot Water and 1-Methylcyclopropane Treatments on Air-Stored Quince Fruit

“…Titratable acidity of quince fruit regularly decreased over time in storage in all treatments in both years (p ≤ 0.05) (Table 1, Figure 5e). This decrease could have resulted from using organic acids as essential substrates in respiration and energy metabolism of the fruit [41]. Titratable acidity content in quince fruit significantly changed, based on postharvest treatments (p ≤ 0.05).…”

Effect of Heat Treatment on the Quality and Soft Rot Resistance of Sweet Potato during Long-Term Storage

“…Furthermore, proper heat treatment offers advantages that encompass non-toxicity, an absence of residues, preservation of nutritional quality, and flavor enhancement, rendering it a promising method for the storage of fruits and vegetables [21] which has been demonstrated across a range of produce, including banana [22], peach [23][24][25], melon [26,27], apple [28][29][30], pepper [31], tomato [32][33][34], cabbage [35,36], and sweet potato [37,38]. For instance, treatment at 46 • C for 30 min before low-temperature storage effectively reduced chilling injury during refrigeration and preserved the quality of honey peaches [25].…”

Hydrogen-rich water treatment improves fresh-cut Gastrodia elata quality by regulating reactive oxygen species metabolism and energy metabolism during low temperature storage

“…The postharvest aging and decline in the quality of plants are closely associated with cellular energy metabolism (Li et al, 2021). Previous study has shown that various postharvest treatments could maintain plant quality by enhancing the energy levels (Li et al, 2020b;He et al, 2021;Wang et al, 2021;Yi et al, 2021).…”