Physiology and Application of Gibberellins in Postharvest Horticultural Crops

Abstract

Gibberellins (GAs) are plant hormones indispensable in regulating the growth and development of fruits. Recent studies have shown that GAs play important roles in delaying horticultural crop ripening and senescence, enhancing the internal and external quality of horticultural crops and resistance to stress and disease. We reviewed the role of GAs in the postharvest physiology of fruits in recent years. GAs are closely related to their ability to retard fruit senescence. GAs could effectively improve fruit storage quality and significantly increase flesh hardness, reduce respiration intensity, inhibit the release of endogenous ethylene, and effectively inhibit fruit softening and ripening. It can also improve the intrinsic and extrinsic quality of fruit storage by improving fruit shape, regulating color, delaying the reduction of soluble solids, promoting sugar accumulation, and delaying vitamin loss. GAs also play a role in postharvest biotic and abiotic stress resistance. The GA treatment effectively reduces the cold damage index, reduces the production and accumulation of superoxide anion(O2−), improves the antioxidant capacity of fruits, and maintains the integrity of cell membranes during low-temperature storage. Moreover, GAs could effectively control some postharvest fruit diseases. In conclusion, GAs play an important role in the physiological regulation of postharvest fruits and have important application prospects in postharvest fruits.

The Postharvest Application of Carvone, Abscisic Acid, Gibberellin, and Variable Temperature for Regulating the Dormancy Release and Sprouting Commencement of Mini-Tuber Potato Seeds Produced under Aeroponics

“…An increase in MDA levels is a clear indicator of damage to cell membranes. The GA3 treatment appeared effective in reducing MDA content, potentially preserving the integrity of cell membranes and preventing the lipid peroxidation reactions that can significantly damage them [40]. Conversely, the carvone and ABA treatments seemed to increase MDA content, possibly due to their lower effectiveness in shielding cell membranes from the onslaught of lipid peroxidation.…”

Bioprocess of Gibberellic Acid by Fusarium fujikuroi: The Challenge of Regulation, Raw Materials, and Product Yields

“…Furthermore, treatment with gibberellins reduces the intensity of respiration, increases pulp hardness, inhibits the release of endogenous ethylene, and represses fruit softening and ripening. It also improves the storage quality of fruits by modulating their shape, size, flavor, color (the content of pigments such as chlorophylls, carotenoids, and anthocyanins), and nutritional value, in addition to delaying the reduction of soluble solids and titratable acids at harvest, promoting the accumulation of sugar, and avoiding the loss of vitamin C, phenols, and soluble proteins, thus maintaining the life and quality of post-harvest vegetables [ 43 ].…”

The Increase in Kaffir Lime Leaf Production Due to Gibberellin Is Diminished by Pruning

“…Gibberellin also overcomes the problem related to alternate bearing on citrus fruits by forming a more uniform fruit yield year by year, increasing the fruit in the off-year, and limiting the fruit in the on-year through flowering intensity and crop load regulation [31][32][33][34]. In terms of post-harvest, gibberellin can be used to delay citrus fruit color break [35], enhance the effectiveness of post-harvest disease control [36], and increase citrus fruit juice content [37,38]. However, there are still a limited number of studies regarding the effect of gibberellin on leaf-oriented citrus genotypes like kaffir lime.…”