Combining salicylic acid and trisodium phosphate alleviates chilling injury in bell pepper (Capsicum annuum L.) through enhancing fatty-acid desaturation efficiency and water retention. (15th October 2020)

• Record Type: Journal Article
• Authors: Ge, Wanying; Zhao, Yingbo; Kong, Ximan; Sun, Huajun; Luo, Manli; Yao, Miaomiao; Wei, Baodong; Ji, Shujuan
• Is Part Of: Food chemistry. Volume 327(2020)
• Publication Date: 2020-10-15
• Subjects: Chilling injury -- Capsicum annuum L. -- Fatty acid desaturation -- Membrane damage -- Water retention; Food -- Analysis -- Periodicals; Food -- Composition -- Periodicals; 664
• DOI: 10.1016/j.foodchem.2020.127057
• Languages: English
• ISSNs: 0308-8146

Abstract

Highlights: Trisodium phosphate (TSP), salicylic acid (SA) and TSP + SA treatments delayed and alleviated CI symptoms of bell pepper. TSP, SA, TSP + SA treatments suppressed LOX activity and MDA content, enhanced GSH and AsA content. Combined TSP + SA treatment was more effective than individual. Greater cold tolerance is apparently linked to moisture retention and elevated fatty-acid desaturation. TSP + SA treatment prevented membrane degrading and cytoplasm leakage. Abstract: Chilling injury (CI) restricts the quality and shelf life of bell pepper fruits; reducing these CI-induced detrimental effects is therefore of high economic and agricultural relevance. Here, we investigated the effects of trisodium phosphate (TSP), salicylic acid (SA), and TSP + SA treatments on pepper fruits under cold stress at 4 °C for 25 d. Combined TSP + SA treatment performed an optimal effect. Specifically, TSP + SA treatment enhanced fatty-acid desaturation efficiency, as indicated by the increased expression of key fatty acid desaturase genes, and higher content of unsaturated fatty acids. Meanwhile, TSP + SA treatment inhibited the CI-induced membrane damage, manifested as lower electrolyte leakage and malondialdehyde content. Furthermore, low field-nuclear magnetic resonance and proline content also revealed that TSP + SA treatment mitigated CI through enhancing water retention in pepper fruits. Collectively, our results may shed new light on optimizing the low-temperature storage conditions of post-harvest peppers.