Membrane lipid metabolism influences chilling injury during cold storage of peach fruit

Peach fruit is prone to chilling injury (CI) during long-term low temperature (LT) storage, and develops protective mechanisms against LT stress. This study revealed that 4 degrees C storage induced the occurrence of CI in peach fruit by promoting the expression of membrane lipid metabolism genes and phosphatidic acid (PA) accumulation, and stimulated a protective mechanism for peach fruit against LT by increasing diacylglycerol (DAG), triacylglycerol (TAG) and several phosphatidylcholine (PC) components in the later storage stage. In contrast, 0 degrees C delayed the occurrence of CI in peach fruit by delaying the degradation of phospholipids, upregulation of fatty acid desaturase (FAD) and the process of fatty acid unsaturation, and maintaining higher levels of PC and PE. Results from this study provide new information on the mechanism of CI in peach fruit, and lay the foundation for the transcriptional regulation mechanism of CI and cold tolerance in peach fruit mediated by mem-brane lipid metabolism.

Automated summary

This study revealed the mechanism of chilling injury (CI) and protective mechanisms in peach fruit during storage at different low temperatures. It found that 4°C storage promoted the occurrence of CI and stimulated protective mechanisms, while 0°C delayed the occurrence of CI. These findings provide important insights into the understanding of CI and cold tolerance in peach fruit.