FOOD SCIENCE ›› 2019, Vol. 40 ›› Issue (17): 96-103.doi: 10.7506/spkx1002-6630-20190101-007

• Basic Research • Previous Articles     Next Articles

Evolution of Aroma Components and Key Gene Expression during Postharvest Ripening of Banana (Musa ABB Pisang Awak)

ZHU Xiaoyang, LI Qiumian, LUO Jun, CHEN Weixin, LU Wangjin, LI Xueping   

  1. (State Key Laboratory for Conservation and Utilization of Subtropical Agro-bioresources, Engineering Research Center of Southern Horticultural Products Preservation, Ministry of Education, Guangdong Provincial Key Laboratory of Postharvest Science of Fruits and Vegetables, College of Horticulture, South China Agricultural University, Guangzhou 510642, China)
  • Online:2019-09-15 Published:2019-09-23

Abstract: With the aim of gaining insights into the evolution of quality characteristics of banana (Musa ABB Pisang Awak) during postharvest ripening, the cultivar ‘Guangefen 1’ was used to investigate the changes in physiological quality, the changes in volatile aroma components with maturity and the changes in the expression patterns of the gene related to aroma synthesis during postharvest storage at room temperature (25 ℃). The results showed that fruit firmness decreased sharply within 2 days after harvest, and the contents of total soluble solids (TSS) and soluble sugar increased significantly. Full ripening was reached on the 6th day of storage. On the 8th day, fruit firmness was reduced to a very low level, and the contents of TSS, and total aroma substances were maximized while the maximum contents of TSS and amino acid occurred on the 6th day. A smaller number of volatile compounds were detected in immature bananas at lower levels, consisting mainly of C6–C9 aldehydes and alcohols along with a lesser amount of esters. The content of volatile compounds increased significantly with fruit ripening, including isoamyl isobutyrate, hexyl acetate, isoamyl acetate as esters, contributing to the unique aroma of Pisang Awak bananas. Expression analysis of the key genes involved in fruit aroma synthesis revealed that the expression of LOX (lipoxygenase), AAT (alcohol acyltransferase), ADH (alcohol dehydrogenase), BCAT (branched chain amino acid transferase) and HPL (hydroperoxide lyase) genes increased with fruit ripening and softening, and then rapidly decreased. However, the expression level of PDC (pyruvate decarboxylase) was higher during the earlier and later storage periods, but lower at the mid-ripening stage, which may closely relate to the high contents of aldehydes and alcohols in unripe and overripe bananas. This present work preliminarily revealed the change profiles of the main volatile substances during banana fruit ripening process and its relationship with fruit physiological activities, which could provide a theoretical basis for postharvest quality maintenance of Pisang Awak bananas.

Key words: Pisang Awak bananas, ripening, quality, volatile compounds, gene expression

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