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Chilling injury (CI) often occurs in postharvest peach fruit during low-temperature storage, and exogenous melatonin (MT) treatment has been demonstrated to alleviate CI in cold-stored peach fruit. In this study, we further investigated the effect of MT treatment on DNA methylation in relation to the chilling-induced browning in cold stored peaches. The results revealed that MT treatment upregulated PpPAL expression while simultaneously suppressing the transcripts of PpPPO and PpPOD. This dual effect resulted in the increased accumulation of phenolics, effectively reducing the incidence of browning in peaches stored at 4 °C. In addition, MT treatment increased the activities of methylesterase and demethylase, affecting significant changes in the DNA methylation levels of the local genes PpPPO , PpPOD and PpPAL , which suggested that MT treatment could mediate DNA methylation of the browning-related genes such as PpPPO , PpPOD and PpPAL , and consequently increased the phenolic contents and alleviated browning symptoms in cold-stored peaches. • MT treatment reduced chilling-induced browning in peaches. • MT increased the accumulation of phenolics in peaches. • MT upregulated PpPAL expression while suppressed the transcripts of PpPPO and PpPOD. • MT treatment increased the activities of methylesterase and demethylase. • MT regulated the DNA methylation levels of the local genes PpPPO , PpPOD and PpPAL. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The effects of indoleacetic acid (IAA) treatment on chilling injury and endogenous phytohormones in peach fruit were studied. The results showed that IAA treatment decreased chilling injury index of cold-stored peaches, effectively maintaining fruit firmness and reducing the electrical conductivity level. IAA treatment upregulated the expression of IAA biosynthetic gene PpMES and signaling pathway gene PpSAUR , but reduced the transcript abundance of IAA degradative genes PpDAO , PpGH3 , and PpIAMT , leading to endogenous IAA accumulation in treated peaches. Meanwhile, after IAA treatment, contents of melatonin and γ-aminobutyric acid (GABA) were also increased which was associated with the upregulation of their anabolic genes and downregulation in GABA catabolic genes. In addition, the levels of abscisic acid (ABA) and gibberellin (GA) were reduced in treated peaches due to its modification in the transcript levels of ABA and GA metabolic genes. Collectively, IAA could alleviate the symptoms of chilling injury in peach fruit via regulating contents of endogenous phytohomones such as IAA, melatonin, GABA and GA. • IAA treatment reduced chilling injury and maintain fruit quality in peaches. • IAA induced endogenous IAA content in harvested peaches. • IAA increased melatonin and GABA contents in harvested peaches. • IAA inhibited ABA and GA contents in harvested peaches. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Glutathione (GSH) improves the scavenging capacity of reactive oxygen species (ROS) in postharvest fruit and vegetable, but the effect of exogenous GSH in okra (Abelmoschus esculentus) has not been clarified. This study investigated the effect of GSH on ROS scavenging in postharvest okra and found that GSH treatment effectively inhibited weight loss and alleviated browning and thereby maintained the appearance and quality of the fruit. Moreover, GSH suppressed levels of hydrogen peroxide (H 2 O 2), superoxide radical (O 2 -), and malondialdehyde (MDA). Treatment with exogenous GSH increased the contents of ascorbic acid (AsA) and GSH in okra, while decreased the contents of dehydroascorbic acid (DHA) and oxidized glutathione (GSSG). GSH treatment also enhanced the ROS-scavenging ability of okra by upregulating the expression of AeAPXs , AeGRs , AeMDHARs and AeDHARs , all of which are associated with redox homeostasis. Collectively, our findings demonstrate that exogenous GSH treatment can extend the shelf life of okra by mediating redox homeostasis. • Exogenous GSH could effectively maintain the quality of okra. • Exogenous GSH could maintain redox homeostasis during okra storage. • GSH enhanced the ROS-scavenging ability by altering related genes expression. • GSH enhanced the activity of the AsA-GSH cycling enzymes. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Apple (Malus domestica Borkh.) is not only an important fruit crop distributed worldwide, but also a common model plant. However, the lack of efficient genetic transformation procedures for apples limits the in-depth studies of their gene functions. Although leaf-regenerated adventitious shoots (LRAS) are a prerequisite for successful genetic transformation of apple, little is known about the underlying molecular mechanism of LRAS. Here, we identified the WUSCHEL-related homeobox (WOX) transcription factor in apple, MdWOX4-2, which was a transcriptional activator. Gene expression as well as morphological and histological observations revealed that MdWOX4-2 is involved in the development of LRAS. Overexpression of MdWOX4 -2 conferred higher regenerative capacity in transgenic tobacco (Nicotiana tabacum) as compared to the wild type (WT). The combined results of the yeast one-hybrid (Y1H), electrophoretic mobility shift assay (EMSA), dual luciferase assays, and transient transactivation assay, revealed that MdWOX4-2 directly bound to and activated the MdLBD41 promoter. Moreover, transgenic experiments further demonstrated that MdLBD41 could significantly enhance the formation of adventitious shoot in transgenic tobacco. Collectively, our findings demonstrate that MdWOX4-2 is important for regulating the LRAS development by activating MdLBD41. • Both MdWOX4-2 and MdLBD41 significantly enhance adventitious shoots in tobacco. • MdWOX4-2 directly bound to and activated the MdLBD41 promoter. • MdWOX4-2-MdLBD41 module regulates adventitious shoots regeneration in apple. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]