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Juvenile and vegetative adult shoot apical meristems (SAM) are actively involved in acquisition of flowering competence, while the embryonic SAM is regarded as &ldquo, responsible&rdquo, only for germination. Comparative analyses of imbibed and stratified seeds of garlic Allium sativum show that only stratified seedlings produced bulbs and flower stems at the end of the season. Since the seed morphology of stratified and non-stratified seeds prior to sowing was similar, the differences are attributed to the molecular alterations in the embryonic SAM. Functional annotation analysis of 3000 differentially expressed genes suggests that seed imbibition reactivates the embryonic cell cycle, initiates the metabolism, and primes garlic seed germination. Stratification enhances DNA modifications, biosynthesis, cellular transport, and tissue development. Similar to vernalization of the vegetative buds, stratification of the embryonic SAM resulted in altered expression of meristem-identity and flowering homologs. Phase transitions from seed germination to flowering and bulbing in A. sativum are tightly connected, and possibly associated with downregulation of specific flowering repressor(s). The embryonic SAM plays an important role not only in seed germination, but in the entire plant life cycle, providing the foundation for the genetic regulation of major functional shifts in metabolism and development.

The yield (kg ha −1 ) and quality (weight, total soluble solids (TSS%), TSS:acid ratio, antioxidative activity in juice and peel) of “Sweetie” ( Citrus maxima × C. paradisi , also known as oroblanco) fruit grown on the non-traditional ‘Poorman’s Orange’ rootstock were similar to and often better than that of “Sweetie” grown on the commercial standard sour orange rootstock, which is susceptible to tristeza. Yield and quality of fruit grown on ‘Swingle’ citrumelo rootstock were inferior to that of sour orange. Fruit grown on ‘Marsh’ grapefruit as a rootstock were of similar or slightly lesser quality than ‘Poorman’. “Sweetie” fruit grown organically were higher in TSS% and titratable acidity than those grown in a conventionally-managed grove, but with a significant decrease in yield, regardless of rootstock.

Treatment of plants with abscisic acid (ABA) can enhance resistance to environmental stresses in general and to preharvest sprouting in particular. Inhibitors of gibberellin (GA) synthesis have been reported to enhance the metabolic activity or effectiveness of ABA. Wheat seeds(Triticum aestivum L., cv. Bet Hashita) were soaked for 2 h in100 μm ABA, in 1250 ppm trinexapac-ethyl (TE, anacylcyclohexanedione-based GA synthesis inhibitor), or in a combination of the two. After drying, seeds were imbibed 24 h in water and the protein in heat-stable extracts from embryos was examined. Treatment with ABA alone increased expression of dehydrin and of a 37 kDa protein. Treatment with TE more than doubled protein concentration in the embryo and enhanced expression of dehydrin and of proteins weighing 37, 20, and15 kDa. Combined treatments of TE and ABA led to enhanced expression of dehydrin and of a 15 kDa protein.

Dear Editor, We read with interest the article by Gorelick et al. [1], who assayed the diabetogenic potential of two ancestral wheat landraces (Triticum turgidum ssp. dicoccoides and spp. dicoccum), compared to a modern wheat cultivar (T. aestivum) in NOD mice. [...].

Wheat (Triticum aestivum L.) varieties with the dwarfing Rht (reduced height) alleles have reduced sensitivity to endogenous or exogenous gibberellin (GA). The Rht isolines are also less sensitive to the effects of chlormequat and other compounds which cause dwarfing by depressing GA synthesis. Abscisic add (ABA) inhibits cereal seed germination and is in dynamic tension with GA, which enhances germination. Tetcyclacis is a cytochrome P450 mono-oxygenase inhibitor of GA synthesis. It also inhibits ABA hydroxylase, thus extending ABA activity. In preliminary experiments, wheat varieties differing in Rht complement responded differently to ABA and/or tetcyclacis. We therefore investigated the effect of seed applications of ABA (100 μM), with or without tetcyclacis (25 μM), on germination and initial growth of Rht wheat isolines Rht-B1b, Rht-B1a (dwarf); Rht-B1b,Rht-D1b (dwarf); Rht-B1b + Rht-D1b (double-dwarf); and Rht-B1a, Rht-D1a (tall) to determine a possible genetic basis for the observed varietal differences. Treating seeds with ABA, tetcyclacis, or both, delayed emergence by 1, 1.8, or 3.7 d, respectively, compared with controls. ABA had little or no effect on final emergence, shoot height, or fresh weight, but led to a slight reduction in dry weight of Rht-D1b and Rht-B1b+D1b. Tetcyclacis reduced growth rate (mm/ d), shoot height, fresh weight, and percentage dry weight in proportion to Rht dosage, as is typical of GA synthesis inhibitors. Synergistic effects of ABA and tetcyclacis were not detected for any parameter measured, except for rate of emergence. ABA did not exert a profound effect on seedling germination or initial growth of the Rht wheat isolines examined in this study.

The viability of Penicillium expansum Link conidia in sporulating culture declined rapidly when exposed to 38 °C, and when conidia were exposed to 38 °C prior to inoculation of apple fruits (Malus ×domestica Borkh.), the resulting lesions were smaller than those on fruit inoculated with nonheated conidia. `Gala' apples were heated after harvest (38 °C for 4 days), pressure infiltrated with a 2% solution of CaCl2, or treated with the antagonist Pseudomonas syringae van Hall, alone or in combinations to reduce postharvest decay caused by Penicillium expansum. After up to 6 months in storage at 1 °C, no decay lesions developed on fruit that were heated after inoculation with P. expansum, or any combination of P. expansum, antagonist, or Ca. Parallel lots of heat-treated and nonheated fruit that were either infiltrated or not infiltrated with Ca were stored up to 6 months. They were then inoculated with P. expansum alone, or with the antagonist followed by P. expansum. Prior heat treatment did not influence lesion size. Calcium alone, the antagonist alone, and heat plus Ca all reduced the incidence of decay by ≈25%, whereas heat plus the antagonist reduced it by 70%. Calcium plus the antagonist or Ca plus the antagonist and heat reduced decay incidence by 89% and 91%, respectively. The integrated strategy of heat-treating fruit, followed by Ca infiltration and then treatment with an antagonist, may be a useful alternative to controlling postharvest decay with fungicides.

SummaryMango (Mangifera indica L. cv. Nam Dokmai) fruits chilled for 21 d at 48C were firmer than non-chilled fruits during subsequent ripening at 258C. The cell wall contents of chilled fruit contained less water-soluble pectin, more ammonium oxalate-soluble pectin and less alkali-soluble pectin than non-chilled fruits. The increase in ammonium oxalate-soluble pectin was at the expense of the alkali-soluble pectin and correlated with high pectinesterase activity in the fruit from low-temperature storage. Polygalacturonase and b-galactosidase activities were inhibited in chilled fruits. The relationships between delay in loss of firmness, and differences between activity of cell wall enzymes and pectin content of chilled and non-chilled fruits are discussed.

Mango fruits (Mangifera indica L. cv. Nam Dokmai) were held for 3 days at 38°C and then transferred to 20°C. Fruits placed directly at 25°C after harvest reached their peak ethylene production after 4 days, while the heated fruit took 9 days (6 days after the end of the heat treatment). The 1-aminocyclopropane-1-carboxylic acid (ACC) content paralleled that of ethylene production in unheated fruits, with highest content occurring on day 4. In heated fruit, ACC content continued to increase for 8 days following the heat treatment. The 1-aminocyclopropane-1-carboxylic acid synthase (ACS) activity in unheated fruit was also highest on day 4. In heated fruit the activity was undetectable following heat treatment, but recovered partially during the ripening period. Initial ethylene production from discs with peel was 6-fold higher in unheated fruit than heated, although afte r6ho fincubation the production from both was similar. Activity of 1-aminocyclopropane-carboxylic acid oxidase (ACO) in the discs also showed an 8-fold difference in initial activity in heated versus unheated discs with peel. This difference disappeared during incubation of the discs. In heated discs without peel, both ethylene and ACO activity remained lower than in discs with peel, and the differences between heated and unheated fruit discs were more pronounced. We conclude that the inhibition of ethylene production found during heat treatment is due to inhibition of both ACS and ACO. ACO recovers full activity following heat, while ACS activity recovers only partially, but enough to allow the heated fruit to achieve an ethylene peak. © 1999 Elsevier Science B.V. All rights reserved.

Postharvest heat treatments were applied to three apple (Malus domestica Borkh.) cultivars: `Anna', `Golden Delicious', and `Jonathan'. The temperatures ranged from 38 to 50 °C and from 5 to 96 hours. The temperatures of 50 °C for 5 or 10 hours and 46 °C for 10 hours controlled all developmental stages of San Jose scale on `Golden Delicious' and `Jonathan' fruit. Blue mold germination was prevented by 46, 42, and 38 °C after 28, 34, and 42 hours, respectively. The time needed to control the fungus was longer than that required to kill the insect. Apples were damaged by a 50 °C treatment but could withstand at least 12 hours at 46 °C and at least 24 hours at 42 °C. At 38 °C no damage was found on preclimacteric apples even after 96 hours, but if postclimacteric fruit were heated at 38 °C heat damage occurred. The treatments that did not cause damage maintained the fruit firmness during post storage ripening. The results are discussed in the context of developing integrated postharvest heat treatments.

Sodium bicarbonate (SBC) inhibited in vitro mycelial growth of A. alternata, Fusarium spp. and R. stolonifer. SBC action was fungistatic rather than fungicidal. Coating commercially harvested ‘Galia’ and ‘Ein-Dor’ melons with wax containing 2% SBC reduced decay incidence after storage and shelf life simulation by four to seven-fold, to a commercially acceptable level of 6–7%, compared to untreated or waxed-treated controls. This treatment also maintained the fresh and blemish-free appearance of the fruit at harvest. Higher concentrations of SBC (3%) were phytotoxic and significantly reduced general fruit appearance. A trial shipment by sea transport to Europe demonstrated that 2% SBC incorporated into a wax coating maintained the marketability of ‘Galia’ melon fruits compared to that of untreated fruit. SBC can be an alternative biocide to the fungicide imazalil, thus eliminating unwanted residues on melon fruits.

Golden Delicious apples (Malus domestica Borkh) were heated for 4 days at 38 °C and then dipped in 2% CaCl2, or dipped in the solution without prior heating. Scanning electron micrographs of the fruit wax layer after three days of 0 °C storage showed that the heated apples had areas of amorphous wax and fewer surface cracks than unheated apples. There was less wax on the surface of heated than on unheated apples. Electron density scan of apple wax showed more calcium in outer than inner wax area of undipped but heated apples, while the opposite obtained in unheated apples. Dips in calcium raised the wax calcium level of the unheated apples more than the heated ones. Plasma emission spectrometry of calcium in apple peel and flesh after 5 months storage at 0 °C showed greater penetration of calcium from the dips into unheated apples, compared to heated apples. It is suggested that during the heat treatment the wax softens and fills in cracks while water loss pulls calcium towards the fruit surface. This continuous wax layer on heated fruit decreases the ability of external calcium to move into the apple.

Penicillium expansum is one of the main postharvest pathogens of apples in Israel. Heating apple fruit inoculated with P. expansum for 96 h at 38°C completely inhibited decay development. Fruit held for 24 h at 42°C or 12 h at 46°C had significantly reduced decay after an additional 14 days incubation at 20°C, compared with unheated inoculated control fruit. Mycelial growth and percentage spore germination in vitro were inversely proportional to length of time of exposure to various temperatures. The ET50 for spore germination was 42, 34 and 20 h at 38, 42 and 46°C, respectively, while the ET50 for mycelial growth was 48, 44 and 36 h at those temperatures. When Penicillium spores were incubated on crude extract prepared from the peel of apple fruits held 4 days at 38°C, germ tube elongation was significantly reduced, while the walls of the tubes were thicker, compared with germ tubes from spores incubated on crude extract prepared from peel of non-heated fruit. The evidence presented here supports the hypothesis that the effect of heating on the decay of apples caused by P. expansum is not only the result of direct inhibition of fungal germination and growth by high temperature, but is also partly due to the formation of an inhibitory substance in the heated peel.

Prestorage heating (38° for four days) of apples (Malus domestica, cv Golden Delicious) leads to enhanced retention of fruit firmness during stor

Mature green tomatoes (Lycopersicon esculentum) were held at 38°C for 3 days and then placed at 12°C for 2 weeks or 2°C for 3 weeks, before being removed to 20°C for 5 days. During the heat treatment, ethylene production, lycopene synthesis, chlorophyll and cell wall degradation were all inhibited, while respiration was enhanced. The tomatoes held at 12°C ripened during storage and the heat-treated tomatoes ripened faster. At the end of storage and shelf-life the heated tomatoes were redder and had higher soluble solids content than control tomatoes. The tomatoes held at 2°C did not ripen during storage. After removal to 20°C, control tomatoes developed chilling injury, while heated tomatoes ripened normally. Prestorage heat treatment of mature green tomatoes permits storage for longer periods of time and at lower temperatures than currently recommended with no loss of their ability to ripen normally.

Apples (Malus domestica Borkh. cv. Anna) were treated at harvest by a dip in 3% CaCI2 solution, heated for 4 days at 38C, or the two treatments combined, before being placed in OC storage. After removal of the apples from storage and holding them for 1 week at 20C, the combined treatment maintained fruit quality best. The fruit remained firmer than with either treatment separately, and peel yellowing and decreased titratable acidity caused by the heat treatment were less pronounced. Heat treatment alone maintained fruit firmness, while CaCI2 alone had no effect on fruit quality, although it raised the fruit calcium level more than the combined treatment in most experiments. Altering the temperature (0, 20, or 38C) of the CaCl2 dip did not change its efficacy. There was less soluble and more insoluble pectin in cell wall extracts of apples from the combined treatment than from other treatments. In addition, proportionally less Ca was present in the water-soluble pectin fraction of the combined treatment compared to other treatments, indicating different binding properties in the cell wall.

Mature-green tomato (Lycopersicon esculentum Mill.) fruit, when kept for 3 days at 36, 38, or 40C before being kept at 2C for 3 weeks, did not develop chilling injury, while unheated fruit placed at 2C immediately after harvest did. When removed from 2 to 20C, the heated tomatoes had lower levels of K+ leakage and a higher phospholipid content than unheated fruit. Sterol levels were similar in heated and unheated fruit while malonaldehyde concentration was higher in heated fruit at transfer to 20C. The unheated tomatoes remained green, and brown areas developed under the peel; their rate of CO2 evolution was high and decreased sharply, while ethylene evolution was low and increased at 20C. In contrast, the heat-treated tomatoes ripened normally although more slowly than freshly harvested tomatoes: color developed normally, chlorophyll disappeared, and lycopene content increased, CO2, and ethylene evolution increased to a climacteric peak and K+ leakage increased with time. During prestorage heating, heat-stress ethylene production was inhibited, protein synthesis was depressed, and heat-shock proteins accumulated. There appears to be a relationship between the “heat shock response” and the protection of tomato fruit from low-temperature injury.

Anna' and 'Granny Smith' apples (Malus domestics Borkh.) that were held at 38C for 4 days before storage at 0C not only were firmer than controls upon removal from storage, but also softened more slowly during shelf life at 17C. Skin yellowing and loss of acidity attendant upon the heat treatment were not prevented by dipping fruit in 2% CaCl2 before heating. Both heat-treated and control fruit softened at the same rate upon exposure to ethylene at 100 µl·liter -1 upon removal from storage. The insoluble pectin content of cortical tissues was higher in heat-treated fruit than in controls after 10 days at 17C, while soluble pectin levels were lower. Arabinose and xylose levels were lower in cell walls from heat-treated cortical tissue, but the treatment had no effect on loss of galactose residues during shelf life. Previous researchers have noted that heating apples at 38C for 4 to 6 days after harvest retarded or inhibited fruit softening while maintaining most other aspects of storage quality (Liu, 1978; Porritt and Lidster, 1978). The exception was a slight yellowing of the skin and a decrease in titratable acidity in comparison with unheated fruit. Calcium treatments also extend the storage life of apples, primarily by reducing the rate of metabolic activity (Bangerth et al., 1972}, thus reducing senes- cence phenomena such as fruit softening, yellowing, and loss of acidity (Ferguson; 1984; Glenn et al., 1988). Since uptake of Ca by pear cells was specifically enhanced by heating cells at 38C (Klein and Ferguson, 1987), we endeavored to determine if heating Ca-treated apples could synergistically inhibit loss of fruit firmness in storage, without associated problems of acid loss and skin yellowing. The specific objectives of this research were to increase the effectiveness of postharvest Ca dips by use of a heat treatment, while simultaneously counteracting the disadvantages of heat treatment alone (loss of acidity and yellowing). Since heat treat- ment inhibits ethylene production by apples (Klein, 1989), we investigated whether softening could be reinduced by exposing heat-treated fruit to ethylene at 100 µl·liter -1 upon removal from storage. We also studied whether the decrease in apple fruit softening after a prestorage heat treatment is due to changes in the neutral sugar and pectin composition of the cell wall in cortical tissue.

Additional index words. Malus domestics, color, firmness, acidity, soluble solids concentration, ethylene, respiration Abstract. The benefits conferred by a prestorage heat treatment on poststorage quality of apples (Malus domestics Borkh.) were measured on 'Anna', a non-storing early cultivar, and 'Granny Smith', a long-storing late cultivar. The major benefit was a decrease in rate of apple softening, both during OC storage and during simulated shelf life at 20C. Soluble solids concentration was not affected by heat treatment, but titratable acidity was reduced. Ethylene production after heat treatment and storage was similar to or higher than that of control apples, but respiration was lower. The optimum temperature and time combination for prestorage treatment of both cultivars was 4 days at 38C. High temperatures have been reported to inhibit ripening of many-fruits "(Mitchell, 1986). If held for too long above 35C, fruit will fail to ripen normally when returned to lower temper- atures. However, pears and apples have been reported to ripen normally if held at 40C for up to 6 days and then returned to 20C (Maxie et al., 1974; Liu, 1978). Liu examined ripeness indices of four cultivars of apples after 2 or 4 days at 40C and found that, compared to control, the heat treatment lowered titratable acidity, retained firmness, and had no effect on soluble solids concentration (SSC). Porritt and Lidster (1978) reported similar changes after storage of heat-treated apples. We have examined this prestorage treatment on 'Anna' apples, a non- scoring early cultivar, and 'Granny Smith,' a long-storing late cultivar. We determined how long the effects persisted in stored apples by examining their rate of ripening, ethylene production, and respiration after various durations of storage. We also de

A pre-storage heat treatment of 38°C for four days applied to apples (Malus domestica cv. ‘Granny Smith’) before standard storage in air at 0°C was found to inhibit the development of superficial scald. Apples stored for three months after heat treatment had superficial scald levels similar to those of apples dipped in diphenylamine (DPA), while all control apples had scald. This inhibitory effect was no longer apparent after five months of storage. The heat treatment inhibited the accumulation of α-farnesene and conjugated trienes in apple cuticle while DPA inhibited only a-farnesene oxidation. Heat treated apples also had lower polyphenoloxidase activity in the peel than untreated apples. This treatment may be a substitute for chemical treatments for short-term storage of scald- susceptible apple varieties.

`Anna' and `Granny Smith' apples (Malus domestics Borkh.) that were kept at 46C for 12 hours or at 42C for 24 hours before storage at 0C were firmer at the end of storage and had a higher soluble solids: acid ratio and a lower incidence of superficial scald than unheated fruit. These heat regimes produced results similar to those obtained by keeping fruit at 38C for 72 or 96 hours before storage. Prestorage regimes of 46C for 24 hours or 42C for 48 hours resulted in fruit damage after storage.

Apple (Malus domestica Borkh. `Grand Alexander') fruit were stored immediately at 0C after harvest or after being held at 38,42, or 46C for 72,24, or 12 h, respectively. Half of each fruit lot was dipped in 1.5 % CaCl before storage. Heating did not appreciably affect Ca uptake into epidermal or cortical tissue. Calcium and heat treatments acted synergistically in reducing the severity of superficial scald and in retaining fruit firmness after 5 months of storage, relative to nontreated or nonheated Ca-dipped fruit.

A prestorage heat treatment of 38C for 4 days applied to `Granny Smith' apples (Malus domestics Borkh.) before regular air storage at 0C inhibited the development of superficial scald. Heat-treated apples stored for 3 months had superficial scald levels similar to diphenylamine (DPA)-dipped apples, while all nontreated control apples had scald. After 5 or 6 months of storage, this inhibition of scald development by prestorage heat treatment declined. The prestorage heat treatment inhibited the accumulation of α-farnesene and conjugated trienes in apple cuticle during storage, while DPA inhibited only α-farnesene oxidation. This treatment may be a substitute for chemical treatments against scald not only for short-term storage of `Granny Smith' but possibly also for other scald-susceptible apple cultivars.

Uptake of Ca(2+) by suspension-cultured pear (Pyrus communis L. cv Passe Crassane) cells and protoplasts was significantly enhanced by exposure to 38 degrees C compared to 25 degrees C. The increased uptake was specific for Ca(2+) and was not due to cell wall binding. Tissues pretreated at 38 degrees C showed increased uptake even upon return to 25 degrees C. Treatment with carbonylcyanide m-chlorophenylhydrazone, salicylhydroxamic acid + KCN, or arsenite also increased Ca(2+) content of cells. Results are discussed with regard to membrane permeability changes, the cellular control of Ca(2+), and heat treatments used to inhibit softening of fruit during postharvest storage.