Fruit Ripening: From Present Knowledge to Future Development, Volume II

Editorial

01 December 2022

Editorial: Fruit ripening: From present knowledge to future development, Volume II

José M. Palma

Francisco J. Corpas

and

Luciano Freschi

896 views

1 citations

Editors

José Manuel Palma

Spanish National Research Council (CSIC)

Francisco J Corpas

Department of Biochemistry, Cell and Molecular Biology of Plants, Experimental Station of Zaidín, Spanish National Research Council (CSIC)

Luciano Freschi

University of São Paulo

Impact

Review

10 October 2022

Insights into transcription factors controlling strawberry fruit development and ripening

Carlos Sánchez-Gómez

, 1 more and

Carmen Martín-Pizarro

(A) Hormone biosynthesis and signaling are regulated by complex GNRs that govern the switch from the development stages, in which auxin (AUX) and gibberellic acid (GA) promote cell fruit division and expansion, to the ripening stages, which are mainly regulated by abscisic acid (ABA). (B) Regulation of the phenylpropanoid pathway by TFs that control metabolic fluxes and modulate different branches of the pathway, such as the lignin, proanthocyanidin or anthocyanin pathways. (C) TFs involved in the regulation of sugar metabolism (SPS, SUS and INV) and transport (SUT). (D) TFs controlling the biosynthesis of volatile compounds, mainly esters, as well as furaneol and eugenol. (E) TFs regulating cell wall modification, and therefore fruit softening during ripening. Blue rounded rectangles indicate TFs. Green arrows and red block symbols denote positive and negative regulation respectively.

Fruit ripening is a highly regulated and complex process involving a series of physiological and biochemical changes aiming to maximize fruit organoleptic traits to attract herbivores, maximizing therefore seed dispersal. Furthermore, this process is of key importance for fruit quality and therefore consumer acceptance. In fleshy fruits, ripening involves an alteration in color, in the content of sugars, organic acids and secondary metabolites, such as volatile compounds, which influence flavor and aroma, and the remodeling of cell walls, resulting in the softening of the fruit. The mechanisms underlying these processes rely on the action of phytohormones, transcription factors and epigenetic modifications. Strawberry fruit is considered a model of non-climacteric species, as its ripening is mainly controlled by abscisic acid. Besides the role of phytohormones in the regulation of strawberry fruit ripening, a number of transcription factors have been identified as important regulators of these processes to date. In this review, we present a comprehensive overview of the current knowledge on the role of transcription factors in the regulation of strawberry fruit ripening, as well as in compiling candidate regulators that might play an important role but that have not been functionally studied to date.

6,872 views

31 citations

Original Research

18 October 2022

Orchard microclimate, tree water uptake and sweet cherry fruit quality under protected cropping

Cameron Hugh Stone

, 2 more and

Ross Corkrey

1,848 views

2 citations

The AP2/ERF superfamily acts as a critical regulator in fruit ripening. Target genes are in rectangles. Protein–protein interactions or co-regulators are in ovals. Red arrows represent expression regulation by AP2/ERF.

Review

18 August 2022

APETALA2/ethylene responsive factor in fruit ripening: Roles, interactions and expression regulation

Yanlei Zhai

, 4 more and

Huiqin Ma

5,158 views

25 citations

Original Research

13 July 2022

Transcriptomic Complexity in Strawberry Fruit Development and Maturation Revealed by Nanopore Sequencing

Qing Chen

, 11 more and

Haoru Tang

4,673 views

6 citations

Original Research

13 July 2022

Examining the Role of Low Temperature in Satsuma Mandarin Fruit Peel Degreening via Comparative Physiological and Transcriptomic Analysis

Oscar W. Mitalo

, 5 more and

Koichiro Ushijima

3,014 views

8 citations

Original Research

12 May 2022

Identification of Key Gene Networks Controlling Soluble Sugar and Organic Acid Metabolism During Oriental Melon Fruit Development by Integrated Analysis of Metabolic and Transcriptomic Analyses

Hong Cheng

, 5 more and

Tao Lin

Oriental melon (Cucumis melo var. acidulus) is one of the most economically important fruit crops worldwide. To elucidate the molecular basis related to soluble sugar and organic acid metabolism in the fruits of two oriental melon cultivars with different sweetness, we performed integrated metabolomic and transcriptomic analyses of the fruits of ‘Tianbao’ (A) with high sweetness and ‘Xiaocuigua’ (B) with low sweetness at different ripening stages. The high accumulation of sucrose, D-glucose, D-(+)-raffinose, and the relatively lower citric acid and malic acid might contribute to the sweet taste of A. By screening the differentially expressed genes (DEGs) and correlation analysis of the DEGs and differentially accumulated metabolites, we deduced that the B cultivar might promote the conversion of glucose and fructose into intermediate compounds for downstream processes such as glycolysis. The tricarboxylic acid (TCA) cycle might also be enhanced compared to A, thus resulting in the differential accumulation of soluble sugars and organic acids, ultimately causing the taste difference between the two oriental melon cultivars. Our finding provides important information for further exploring the metabolic mechanisms of soluble sugars and organic acids in oriental melon.

5,701 views

28 citations

Original Research

21 March 2022

The Interaction Between CitMYB52 and CitbHLH2 Negatively Regulates Citrate Accumulation by Activating CitALMT in Citrus Fruit

Shengchao Liu

, 8 more and

Kunsong Chen

Citric acid plays significant roles in numerous physiological processes in plants, including carbon metabolism, signal transduction, and tolerance to environmental stress. For fruits, it has a major effect on fruit organoleptic quality by directly influencing consumer taste. Citric acid in citrus is mainly regulated by the balance between synthesis, degradation, and vacuolar storage. The genetic and molecular regulations of citric acid synthesis and degradation have been comprehensively elucidated. However, the transporters for citric acid in fruits are less well understood. Here, an aluminum-activated malate transporter, CitALMT, was characterized. Transient overexpression and stable transformation of CitALMT significantly reduced citrate concentration in citrus fruits and transgenic callus. Correspondingly, transient RNA interference-induced silencing of CitALMT and increased citrate significantly, indicating that CitALMT plays an important role in regulating citrate concentration in citrus fruits. In addition, dual-luciferase assays indicated that CitMYB52 and CitbHLH2 could trans-activate the promoter of CitALMT. EMSA analysis showed that CitbHLH2 could physically interact with the E-box motif in the CitALMT promoter. Bimolecular fluorescence complementation assays, yeast two-hybrid, coimmunoprecipitation and transient overexpression, and RNAi assay indicated that the interaction between CitMYB52 and CitbHLH2 could synergistically trans-activate CitALMT to negatively regulate citrate accumulation.

3,914 views

22 citations