A combination of 1-methylcyclopropene treatment and intermittent warming alleviates chilling injury and affects phenolics and antioxidant activity of peach fruit during storage

Peach (Prunus persica L cv. Yuhualu) fruit were picked at their physiologically mature stage and treated with 5 mu L L-1 1-methylcyclopropene (1-MCP), intermittent warming (IW) and a combination of 1-MCP and IW (1-MCP + IW). Severity of chilling injury (CI), quality characters, phenolic composition as well as antioxidant properties were measured during refrigerate storage at 2 degrees C plus three days of shelf-life at 20 degrees C. These results showed that all applied treatments dramatically prevented the degree of flesh browning for 'Yuhualu' peach fruit. Furthermore, 1-MCP treatment was able to alleviate the negative impact of IW, and the combination of 1-MCP and IW possessed the lowest CI index and the highest fruit qualities. Additionally, treatment with 1-MCP alone or combined with IW effectively delayed and elevated the accumulation of phenolics and antioxidant capacities for peach fruit during entire cold storage and subsequent shelf-life period. The application of 1-MCP plus IW could be a favorable practice for preventing chilling injury and maintaining fruit quality for peach fruit during refrigerate storage.