Carotenoid biosynthesis and accumulation during tomato fruit ripening: role of plastoglobules and other suborganellar structures

Exogenous application of salicylic acid (SA) has been known for delaying ripening in many fruit and vegetables. But the function of endogenous SA in relation to postharvest fruit performance is still unexplored. To understand the role of endogenous SA in postharvest fruit ripening of tomato, 33 tomato lines were examined for their endogenous SA content, membrane stability index (MSI), and shelf life (SL) at turning and red stages of tomato fruit ripening. Six tomato lines having contrasting shelf lives from these categories were subjected further for ethylene (ET) evolution, 1-aminocyclopropane-1-carboxylic acid synthase (ACS), 1-aminocyclopropane-1-carboxylic acid oxidase (ACO), polygalacturonase (PG), pectin methyl esterase (PME), antioxidant assays and lipid peroxidation. It was found that high endogenous SA has a direct association with low ET evolution, which leads to the high SL of fruit. High lycopene content was also found to be correlated with high SA. Total antioxidants, PG, and PME decreased and lipid peroxidation increased from turning to red stage of tomato fruit development. Furthermore, these lines were subjected to expression analysis for SA biosynthesis enzymes viz. Solanum lycopersicum Isochorismate Synthase (SlICS) and SlPAL. Real-time PCR data revealed that high SL lines have high SlPAL4 expression and low SL lines have high SlPAL6 expression. Based on the results obtained in this study, it was concluded that endogenous SA regulates ET evolution and SL with the aid of the antioxidative defense system, and SlPAL4 and SlPAL6 genes play significant but opposite roles during fruit ripening.

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Effect of Fluridone on Some Physiological and Qualitative Features of Ripening Tomato Fruit

Acta Biologica Cracoviensia s Botanica ◽

10.1515/abcsb-2017-0012 ◽

2017 ◽

Vol 59 (2) ◽

pp. 41-49

Author(s):

Justyna Góraj-Koniarska ◽

Marian Saniewski ◽

Ryszard Kosson ◽

Wiesław Wiczkowski ◽

Marcin Horbowicz

Keyword(s):

Ethylene Production ◽

Tomato Fruit ◽

Carotenoid Biosynthesis ◽

Tomato Fruits ◽

Tomato Plants ◽

Tomato Fruit Ripening ◽

Chlorophyll Production ◽

Carotenoid Biosynthesis Pathway ◽

Metabolic Significance

AbstractIn tomato fruits, chlorophyll, lycopene and ß-carotene are mostly responsible for the color. During ripening of tomato fruits, the color of the pericarp changes from green to red as chlorophyll is degraded and carotenoids accumulate. These changes are associated with an increase in respiration and ethylene production. Carotenoid biosynthesis pathway in plants can be disturbed by herbicide fluridone (1-methyl-3-phenyl-5-[3-trifluoromethyl(phenyl)]- 4(1H)-pyridinone), which inhibits the activity of phytoene desaturase, an enzyme responsible for conversion of phytoene to phytofluene. Fluridone is also used as an inhibitor of biosynthesis of abscisic acid (ABA) and strigolactones, and it reduces chlorophyll production in plants. In our research we studied the effect of fluridone on some physiological parameters, such as color, firmness, ethylene production, lycopene and chlorophyll content during ripening of the tomato fruit. Tomato plants cv. Altadena (Syngenta) were cultivated in a greenhouse in controlled temperature and both immature and mature fruits were used for the experiments, performed between August and November 2016. Fluridone at concentrations of 0.1% and 1.0% in lanolin paste was applied as a 2-3 mm stripe from the top to the base of tomato fruits, and as a control a stripe of lanolin was applied in the same way on the opposite side of the fruits. Fluridone at a concentration of 1.0% greatly inhibited lycopene accumulation in the pericarp of tomato fruits from the treated side. The measurements of fruit firmness have shown no significant differences between firmness of the part of the tomato fruits treated with fluridone, and the non-treated ones. Tomato fruits treated with fluridone produced amounts of ethylene similar to those found in control tissues on the opposite side of the same fruit. Fluridone delayed chlorophyll degradation in tomato fruits. The metabolic significance of these findings is discussed with the role of carotenogenesis inhibition in tomato fruit ripening.

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A nuclear-localized cysteine desulfhydrase plays a role in fruit ripening in tomato

Horticulture Research ◽

10.1038/s41438-020-00439-1 ◽

2020 ◽

Vol 7 (1) ◽

Author(s):

Kang-Di Hu ◽

Xiao-Yue Zhang ◽

Gai-Fang Yao ◽

Yu-Lei Rong ◽

Chen Ding ◽

...

Keyword(s):

Amino Acid ◽

Fruit Ripening ◽

Tomato Fruit ◽

Carotenoid Biosynthesis ◽

Ethylene Biosynthesis ◽

Chlorophyll Degradation ◽

Transcriptional Level ◽

Tomato Fruit Ripening ◽

Ethylene Signaling Pathway ◽

Cysteine Desulfhydrase

AbstractHydrogen sulfide (H2S) is a gaseous signaling molecule that plays multiple roles in plant development. However, whether endogenous H2S plays a role in fruit ripening in tomato is still unknown. In this study, we show that the H2S-producing enzyme l-cysteine desulfhydrase SlLCD1 localizes to the nucleus. By constructing mutated forms of SlLCD1, we show that the amino acid residue K24 of SlLCD1 is the key amino acid that determines nuclear localization. Silencing of SlLCD1 by TRV-SlLCD1 accelerated fruit ripening and reduced H2S production compared with the control. A SlLCD1 gene-edited mutant obtained through CRISPR/Cas9 modification displayed a slightly dwarfed phenotype and accelerated fruit ripening. This mutant also showed increased cysteine content and produced less H2S, suggesting a role of SlLCD1 in H2S generation. Chlorophyll degradation and carotenoid accumulation were enhanced in the SlLCD1 mutant. Other ripening-related genes that play roles in chlorophyll degradation, carotenoid biosynthesis, cell wall degradation, ethylene biosynthesis, and the ethylene signaling pathway were enhanced at the transcriptional level in the lcd1 mutant. Total RNA was sequenced from unripe tomato fruit treated with exogenous H2S, and transcriptome analysis showed that ripening-related gene expression was suppressed. Based on the results for a SlLCD1 gene-edited mutant and exogenous H2S application, we propose that the nuclear-localized cysteine desulfhydrase SlLCD1 is required for endogenous H2S generation and participates in the regulation of tomato fruit ripening.

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Ultrastructure of Tomato Fruit Ripening and the Role of Polygalacturonase Isoenzymes in Cell Wall Degradation

PLANT PHYSIOLOGY ◽

10.1104/pp.72.4.1088 ◽

1983 ◽

Vol 72 (4) ◽

pp. 1088-1093 ◽

Cited By ~ 125

Author(s):

Philip R. Crookes ◽

Donald Grierson

Keyword(s):

Cell Wall ◽

Fruit Ripening ◽

Tomato Fruit ◽

Cell Wall Degradation ◽

Tomato Fruit Ripening

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Role of pectin methylesterase in tomato fruit ripening and quality attributes of processed tomato juice

Progress in Biotechnology - Pectins and Pectinases, Proceedings of an International Symposium ◽

10.1016/s0921-0423(96)80267-x ◽

1996 ◽

pp. 355-368 ◽

Cited By ~ 3

Author(s):

A.K. Handa ◽

D.M. Tieman ◽

K.K. Mishra ◽

B.R. Thakur ◽

R.K. Singh

Keyword(s):

Fruit Ripening ◽

Tomato Fruit ◽

Pectin Methylesterase ◽

Quality Attributes ◽

Tomato Juice ◽

Tomato Fruit Ripening

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Rosmarinic Acid Delays Tomato Fruit Ripening by Regulating Ripening-Associated Traits

Antioxidants ◽

10.3390/antiox10111821 ◽

2021 ◽

Vol 10 (11) ◽

pp. 1821

Author(s):

Changan Zhu ◽

Shaofang Wu ◽

Ting Sun ◽

Zhiwen Zhou ◽

Zhangjian Hu ◽

...

Keyword(s):

Shelf Life ◽

Fruit Ripening ◽

Rosmarinic Acid ◽

Color Change ◽

Tomato Fruit ◽

Tomato Fruits ◽

Tomato Fruit Ripening ◽

Sensory Evolution ◽

Reduced Forms

Fruits are excellent sources of essential vitamins and health-boosting minerals. Recently, regulation of fruit ripening by both internal and external cues for the improvement of fruit quality and shelf life has received considerable attention. Rosmarinic acid (RA) is a kind of natural plant-derived polyphenol, widely used in the drug therapy and food industry due to its distinct physiological functions. However, the role of RA in plant growth and development, especially at the postharvest period of fruits, remains largely unknown. Here, we demonstrated that postharvest RA treatment delayed the ripening in tomato fruits. Exogenous application of RA decreased ripening-associated ethylene production and inhibited the fruit color change from green to red based on the decline in lycopene accumulation. We also found that the degradation of sucrose and malic acid during ripening was significantly suppressed in RA-treated tomato fruits. The results of metabolite profiling showed that RA application promoted the accumulation of multiple amino acids in tomato fruits, such as aspartic acid, serine, tyrosine, and proline. Meanwhile, RA application also strengthened the antioxidant system by increasing both the activity of antioxidant enzymes and the contents of reduced forms of antioxidants. These findings not only unveiled a novel function of RA in fruit ripening, but also indicated an attractive strategy to manage and improve shelf life, flavor, and sensory evolution of tomato fruits.

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