Does carbohydrate availability play a role in sweet cherry fruitlet abscission?

Abstract Background The shedding of premature sweet cherry (Prunus avium L) fruit has significantly impacted production, which in turn has a consequential effect on economic benefits. Result To better understand the molecular mechanism of sweet cherry fruitlet abscission, pollens viability and structure had observed from the pollination trees. Subsequently, the morphological characters of shedding fruitlet, the plant hormone titers of dropping carpopodium, transcriptome of the abscising carpopodium, as well as the HD-ZIP gene family were investigated. These findings showed that the pollens giving rise to heavy fruitlet abscission were malformed in structure, and their viability was lower than the average level. The abscising fruitlet and carpopodium characterized in red color, and embryos of abscising fruitlets were aborted, which was highly ascribed to the low pollen viability and malformation. Transcriptome analysis showed 6,462 were significantly differentially expressed, of which 2,456 genes were up-regulated and 4,006 down-regulated. Among these genes, the auxin biosynthesis and signal transduction genes (α-Trp, AUX1), was down-regulated, while 1-aminocyclopropane-1-carboxylate oxidase gene (ACO) affected in ethylene biosynthesis, was up-regulated in abscising carpopodium. About genes related to cell wall remodeling (CEL, PAL, PG EXP, XTH), were up-regulated in carpopodium abscission, which reflecting the key roles in regulating the abscission process. The results of transcriptome analysis considerably conformed with those of proteome analysis as documented previously. In comparison with those of the retention fruitlet, the auxin contents in abscising carpopodium were significantly low, which presumably increased the ethylene sensitivity of the abscission zone, conversely, the abscisic acid (ABA) accumulation was considerably higher in abscising carpopodium. Furthermore, the ratio of (TZ + IAA + GA3) / ABA also obviously lower in abscising carpopodium. Besides, the HD-ZIP gene family analysis showed that PavHB16 and PavHB18 were up-regulated in abscising organs. Conclusion Our findings combine morphology, cytology and transcriptional regulation to reveal the molecular mechanism of sweet cherry fruitlet abscission. It provides a new perspective for further study of plant organ shedding.

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Genome-Wide Identification of ARF Gene Family Suggests a Functional Expression Pattern during Fruitlet Abscission in Prunus avium L.

International Journal of Molecular Sciences ◽

10.3390/ijms222111968 ◽

2021 ◽

Vol 22 (21) ◽

pp. 11968

Author(s):

Qiandong Hou ◽

Zhilang Qiu ◽

Zhuang Wen ◽

Huimin Zhang ◽

Zhengchun Li ◽

...

Keyword(s):

Plant Growth ◽

Expression Pattern ◽

Sweet Cherry ◽

Prunus Avium ◽

Expression Patterns ◽

Abiotic Stress Response ◽

Drought Treatment ◽

Response Factors ◽

Prunus Avium L ◽

Fruitlet Abscission

Auxin response factors (ARFs) play a vital role in plant growth and development. In the current study, 16 ARF members have been identified in the sweet cherry (Prunus avium L.) genome. These genes are all located in the nucleus. Sequence analysis showed that genes in the same subgroup have similar exon-intron structures. A phylogenetic tree has been divided into five groups. The promoter sequence includes six kinds of plant hormone-related elements, as well as abiotic stress response elements such as low temperature or drought. The expression patterns of PavARF in different tissues, fruitlet abscission, cold and drought treatment were comprehensively analyzed. PavARF10/13 was up-regulated and PavARF4/7/11/12/15 was down-regulated in fruitlet abscising. These genes may be involved in the regulation of fruit drop in sweet cherry fruits. This study comprehensively analyzed the bioinformatics and expression pattern of PavARF, which can lay the foundation for further understanding the PavARF family in plant growth development and fruit abscission.

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Cross-talk between transcriptome, phytohormone and HD-ZIP gene family analysis illuminates the molecular mechanism underlying fruitlet abscission in sweet cherry (Prunus avium L)

BMC Plant Biology ◽

10.1186/s12870-021-02940-8 ◽

2021 ◽

Vol 21 (1) ◽

Author(s):

Zhilang Qiu ◽

Zhuang Wen ◽

Qiandong Hou ◽

Guang Qiao ◽

Kun Yang ◽

...

Keyword(s):

Gene Family ◽

Molecular Mechanism ◽

Transcriptome Analysis ◽

Sweet Cherry ◽

Prunus Avium ◽

Pollen Viability ◽

Economic Benefits ◽

Oxidase Gene ◽

Family Analysis ◽

Fruitlet Abscission

Abstract Background The shedding of premature sweet cherry (Prunus avium L) fruitlet has significantly impacted production, which in turn has a consequential effect on economic benefits. Result To better understand the molecular mechanism of sweet cherry fruitlet abscission, pollen viability and structure had been observed from the pollination trees. Subsequently, the morphological characters of the shedding fruitlet, the plant hormone titers of dropping carpopodium, the transcriptome of the abscising carpopodium, as well as the HD-ZIP gene family were investigated. These findings showed that the pollens giving rise to heavy fruitlet abscission were malformed in structure, and their viability was lower than the average level. The abscising fruitlet and carpopodium were characterized in red color, and embryos of abscising fruitlet were aborted, which was highly ascribed to the low pollen viability and malformation. Transcriptome analysis showed 6462 were significantly differentially expressed, of which 2456 genes were up-regulated and 4006 down-regulated in the abscising carpopodium. Among these genes, the auxin biosynthesis and signal transduction genes (α-Trp, AUX1), were down-regulated, while the 1-aminocyclopropane-1-carboxylate oxidase gene (ACO) affected in ethylene biosynthesis, was up-regulated in abscising carpopodium. About genes related to cell wall remodeling (CEL, PAL, PG EXP, XTH), were up-regulated in carpopodium abscission, which reflecting the key roles in regulating the abscission process. The results of transcriptome analysis considerably conformed with those of proteome analysis as documented previously. In comparison with those of the retention fruitlet, the auxin contents in abscising carpopodium were significantly low, which presumably increased the ethylene sensitivity of the abscission zone, conversely, the abscisic acid (ABA) accumulation was considerably higher in abscising carpopodium. Furthermore, the ratio of (TZ + IAA + GA3) / ABA also obviously lower in abscising carpopodium. Besides, the HD-ZIP gene family analysis showed that PavHB16 and PavHB18 were up-regulated in abscising organs. Conclusion Our findings combine morphology, cytology and transcriptional regulation to reveal the molecular mechanism of sweet cherry fruitlet abscission. It provides a new perspective for further study of plant organ shedding.

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Comparative Proteomics Profiling Illuminates the Fruitlet Abscission Mechanism of Sweet Cherry as Induced by Embryo Abortion

International Journal of Molecular Sciences ◽

10.3390/ijms21041200 ◽

2020 ◽

Vol 21 (4) ◽

pp. 1200

Author(s):

Zhi-Lang Qiu ◽

Zhuang Wen ◽

Kun Yang ◽

Tian Tian ◽

Guang Qiao ◽

...

Keyword(s):

Mass Spectrometry ◽

Cell Wall ◽

Sweet Cherry ◽

Prunus Avium ◽

Comparative Proteomics ◽

Cell Wall Degradation ◽

Embryo Viability ◽

Embryo Abortion ◽

Related Proteins ◽

Fruitlet Abscission

Sweet cherry (Prunus avium L.) is a delicious nutrient-rich fruit widely cultivated in countries such as China, America, Chile, and Italy. However, the yield often drops severely due to the frequently-abnormal fruitlet abscission, and few studies on the metabolism during its ripening process at the proteomic level have been executed so far. To get a better understanding regarding the sweet cherry abscission mechanism, proteomic analysis between the abscising carpopodium and non-abscising carpopodium of sweet cherry was accomplished using a newly developed Liquid chromatography-mass spectrometry/mass spectrometry with Tandem Mass Tag (TMT-LC-MS/MS) methodology. The embryo viability experiments showed that the vigor of the abscission embryos was significantly lower than that of retention embryo. The activity of cell wall degrading enzymes in abscising carpopodium was significantly higher than that in non-abscising carpopodium. The anatomy results suggested that cells in the abscission zone were small and separated. In total, 6280 proteins were identified, among which 5681 were quantified. It has been observed that differentially accumulated proteins (DAPs) influenced several biological functions and various subcellular localizations. The Kyoto Encyclopedia of Genes and Genomes (KEGG) enrichment analysis showed that plenty of metabolic pathways were notably enriched, particularly those involved in phytohormone biosynthesis, cell wall metabolism, and cytoskeletal metabolism, including 1-aminocyclopropane-1-carboxylate oxidase proteins which promote ethylene synthesis, and proteins promoting cell wall degradation, such as endoglucanases, pectinase, and polygalacturonase. Differential expression of proteins concerning phytohormone biosynthesis might activate the shedding regulation signals. Up-regulation of several cell wall degradation-related proteins possibly regulated the shedding of plant organs. Variations of the phytohormone biosynthesis and cell wall degradation-related proteins were explored during the abscission process. Furthermore, changes in cytoskeleton-associated proteins might contribute to the abscission of carpopodium. The current work represented the first study using comparative proteomics between abscising carpopodium and non-abscising carpopodium. These results indicated that embryo abortion might lead to phytohormone synthesis disorder, which effected signal transduction pathways, and hereby controlled genes involved in cell wall degradation and then caused the abscission of fruitlet. Overall, our data may give an intrinsic explanation of the variations in metabolism during the abscission of carpopodium.

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The effect of carbohydrate availability on postharvest fruit quality in sweet cherry

Acta Horticulturae ◽

10.17660/actahortic.2016.1120.59 ◽

2016 ◽

pp. 385-390

Author(s):

E.F. Mertes ◽

D.C. Close ◽

R. Corkrey ◽

J.E. Jones

Keyword(s):

Fruit Quality ◽

Sweet Cherry ◽

Carbohydrate Availability

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Vulnerability of sweet cherry cultivars to continuous periods of spring frosts in Plovdiv, Bulgaria

Agricultural Science and Technology ◽

10.15547/ast.2020.04.055 ◽

2020 ◽

Vol 12 (4) ◽

pp. 348-352

Author(s):

S. Malchev ◽

S. Savchovska

Keyword(s):

Sweet Cherry ◽

Weather Conditions ◽

Frost Damage ◽

Cold Weather ◽

Bud Burst ◽

Intermediate Group ◽

Air Temperatures ◽

Wide Range ◽

Group Form ◽

Sweet Cherry Cultivars

Abstract. The periods with continuous freezing air temperatures reported during the spring of 2020 (13 incidents) affected a wide range of local and introduced sweet cherry cultivars in the region of Plovdiv. They vary from -0.6°C on March 02 to -4.9°C on March 16-17. The duration of influence of the lowest temperatures is 6 and 12 hours between March 16 and 17. The inspection of fruit buds and flowers was conducted twice (on March 26 and April 08) at different phenological stages after continuous waves of cold weather conditions alternated with high temperatures. During the phenological phase ‘bud burst’ (tight cluster or BBCH 55) some of the flowers in the buds did not develop further making the damage hardly detectable. The most damaged are hybrid El.28-21 (95.00%), ‘Van’ (91.89%) and ‘Bing’ (89.41%) and from the next group ‘Lapins’ (85.98%) and ‘Rosita’ (83.33%). A larger intermediate group form ‘Kossara’ (81.67%), ‘Rozalina’ (76.00%), ‘Sunburst’ (75.00%), ‘Bigarreau Burlat’ (69.11%) and ‘Kuklenska belitza’ (66.67%). Candidate-cultivar El.17-90 ‘Asparuh’ has the lowest frost damage values of 55.00% and El.17-37 ‘Tzvetina’ with damage of 50.60%.

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