Research Progress and Trends in Metabolomics of Fruit Trees

Abstract

Metabolomics is an indispensable part of modern systems biotechnology, applied in the diseases’ diagnosis, pharmacological mechanism, and quality monitoring of crops, vegetables, fruits, etc. Metabolomics of fruit trees has developed rapidly in recent years, and many important research results have been achieved in combination with transcriptomics, genomics, proteomics, quantitative trait locus (QTL), and genome-wide association study (GWAS). These research results mainly focus on the mechanism of fruit quality formation, metabolite markers of special quality or physiological period, the mechanism of fruit tree’s response to biotic/abiotic stress and environment, and the genetics mechanism of fruit trait. According to different experimental purposes, different metabolomic strategies could be selected, such as targeted metabolomics, non-targeted metabolomics, pseudo-targeted metabolomics, and widely targeted metabolomics. This article presents metabolomics strategies, key techniques in metabolomics, main applications in fruit trees, and prospects for the future. With the improvement of instruments, analysis platforms, and metabolite databases and decrease in the cost of the experiment, metabolomics will prompt the fruit tree research to achieve more breakthrough results.

Transcription factors MhDREB2A/MhZAT10 play a role in drought and cold stress response crosstalk in apple

“…When the aboveground temperature rises in early spring, the soil has not thawed completely and roots remain dormant underground; at the same time, transpiration increases in the branches with insufficient water supply. Thus, fruit trees suffer a drought and cold combined stress, which often leads to shoot shriveling ( Li et al 2010 ; Liang et al 2017 ). Shoot shriveling caused by the superimposition of drought and cold stress occurs especially in young 1- to 3-year-old fruit trees of apple ( Malus domestica ), pear ( Pyrus communis ), apricot ( Prunus armeniaca ), peach ( Prunus persica ), and other fruits, resulting in tree shape disorder, incomplete crowns, and even death of all aboveground parts.…”

Integrated Metabolomics and Transcriptomics Analysis of Flavonoid Biosynthesis Pathway in Polygonatum cyrtonema Hua

“…Using various chromatography and HPLC techniques for extraction and purification, 90 flavonoids were gradually identified from the genus Polygonatum based on their physicochemical properties and spectral characteristics. Metabolomics technology employs multi-reaction monitoring techniques to collect vast amounts of data and establish a metabolite specimen database, achieving high-throughput and accurate qualitative and quantitative analysis of metabolites [19], and providing more comprehensive and precise information on metabolites [20]. In recent years, 53 flavonoids have been isolated from the genus Polygonatum using metabolomics techniques.…”

Transcriptional repression of MdMa1 by MdMYB21 in Ma locus decreases malic acid content in apple fruit

“…Fruit acidity is a quantitative trait with a complex underlying genetic mechanism that is regulated by one or more major and/or numerous minor genes (Zhang et al., 2018). The construction of genetic maps and application of quantitative trait locus (QTL) mapping for fruit organic acid accumulation have enabled the identification of major candidate genes in apples and other fruit trees (Ren et al., 2018; Kostick & Luby, 2022; Li et al., 2022). A major QTL designated Ma at the top of linkage group (LG)16 controls malic acid, which is the most predominant organic acid in apple, and accounted for 17–42% of the variation in fruit acidity (Kenis et al., 2008; Xu et al., 2012).…”