Aug 2026· The Journal of the Science of Food and Agriculture· 0 citations· 63 references
Medicine
TL;DR
This study elucidates the metabolic processes and molecular mechanisms governing postharvest sweetness development in kiwiberry and provides a theoretical foundation for breeding high-quality cultivars with enhanced sweetness.
Abstract
Background
Kiwiberry is a climacteric fruit known for its unique flavor and rich nutritional profile. Fruit sweetness increases gradually during postharvest storage; however, the molecular mechanisms underlying this process remain unclear.
Results
In this study, targeted metabolomic analysis identified 24 carbohydrate metabolites in kiwiberry. Notably, glucose, sucrose, fructose, and inositol exhibited relatively high abundance and displayed a progressive upward trend during storage. Transcriptomic profiling screened 94 genes encoding 14 key enzymes within the 'Starch and sucrose metabolism' pathway. Weighted gene co-expression network analysis identified 9 transcription factors associated with increased postharvest sweetness. Among them, AaDof was identified as a key transcription factor, showing regulatory interactions with 16 downstream genes involved in carbohydrate metabolism.
Polygonatum cyrtonema Hua is a traditional Chinese medicine with the same origin as both medicine and food, and its medicinal components have considerable clinical value. Due to its substantial market demand, it is now primarily produced through artificial cultivation. To produce high-quality P. cyrtonema, we performed transcriptome and metabolome sequencing of one-year-old and three-year-old P. cyrtonema to explore the growth regulation mechanisms and key genes involved in improving its quality. A total of 1,957 differentially expressed genes (DEGs) and 163 differentially expressed metabolites (DEMs) were identified in this study. Integrated transcriptomic and metabolomic analyses suggested that the growth regulation of P. cyrtonema may be primarily associated with sphingolipid metabolism, phenylpropanoid biosynthesis, and starch and sucrose metabolism. Our data suggest that sucrose transport to sink organs may be facilitated by increased expression of the bidirectional sugar transporter SWEET14, and sucrose may be hydrolyzed by β-fructofuranosidase, potentially providing energy for plant growth on one hand and contributing to fructose accumulation on the other. Furthermore, the elevated abundance of L-phenylalanine may be associated with an increase in secondary metabolites, which could provide a metabolic basis for age-dependent growth and metabolite partitioning in rhizomes. The observed downregulation of sphingolipid metabolism-related genes may reflect the perennial growth habit of P. cyrtonema, whereby slower growth in the first year may promote sphingolipid-mediated root development. However, we emphasize that these inferences are based on correlative transcriptomic and metabolomic data, and functional validation is required to establish causal relationships.
Yu Wang, Hai-Yang Zhao, Wen-Jie He et al.· Frontiers in Plant Science· 0 citations
The flavor quality of postharvest Prunus domestica × armeniaca fruits is closely related to storage temperature and sugar and acid metabolism, but the synergistic regulation mechanism of key gene modules is not clear. In order to understand how flavor quality and sugar-acid metabolism regulate and interact, "Fengweihuanghou" was used as the material and stored at 0°C and 4°C for 45 days, respectively. The data of physiological indexes, transcriptome, metabolomics, and weighted gene co-expression network analysis (WGCNA) were integrated. Physiological results showed that 0°C accelerated fruit browning, whereas 4°C effectively maintained the appearance quality within 30 days. Transcriptome showed that multiple key coding enzyme genes in glycolysis and tricarboxylic acid cycle (TCA) cycle were downregulated at 0°C, and aerobic metabolism was weakened as a whole. Storing at 4°C promoted the upregulation of multiple key coding enzyme genes and enhanced the synthesis of sugar and organic acids. Metabolomics showed that the accumulation of sucrose and glucose-6-phosphate was significantly positively correlated with the expression of key genes, and 4°C was beneficial to sucrose accumulation. Module genes, such as MEturquoise, are closely related to sugar and acid components, and their expression is temperature and time dependent. In summary, 4°C positively regulates the key genes of central carbon metabolism and activates specific co-expression modules, which can better maintain the balance of sugar and acid metabolism and flavor quality within 30 days. Both temperatures are not suitable for storage for up to 45 days. Therefore, 4°C is suitable for short-term storage.
Jie Yang, Shu-Tong Wu, Hai-Fang Hu et al.· Journal of Food Science· 0 citations
Findings reveal the molecular mechanism underlying sowing date-mediated seed quality formation and provide a theoretical basis for high-quality sorghum production.
Perilla (Perilla frutescens) is an important oil-bearing crop rich in α-linolenic acid (ALA), and seed oil quality varies greatly among different germplasms. However, the molecular and metabolic mechanisms underlying genotypic differences in ALA accumulation remain unclear. In this study, four Perilla varieties with distinct seed phenotypic traits were used to investigate the variations in seed quality, metabolome, and transcriptome. Significant genotypic differences were observed in seed color, thousand-grain weight, and oil content. QO8 showed the highest seed oil content, while QS5 and QO10 exhibited relatively lower oil accumulation levels. Metabolome analysis revealed that lipid metabolism was the dominant metabolic category in Perilla seeds. Multiple differentially accumulated metabolites (DAMs), including ALA, stearic acid, traumatic acid, and 10-OPDA, displayed genotype-specific accumulation patterns. KEGG enrichment demonstrated that α-linolenic acid metabolism and unsaturated fatty acid biosynthesis were the most significantly divergent pathways among different Perilla germplasms. Transcriptome analysis identified numerous differentially expressed genes (DEGs) involved in fatty acid and ALA biosynthesis, such as FAD2, LOX, AOS, AOC, OPR, KAT, ECH, and ACOX. Integrated transcriptome and metabolome analysis further confirmed that the differential expression of structural genes altered the metabolic flux of the ALA and downstream jasmonic acid pathway, resulting in varied accumulation of core lipid intermediates. In addition, WRKY and MYB transcription factors were identified as key upstream regulators that positively or negatively modulated ALA metabolic homeostasis. This study systematically clarified the phenotypic, metabolic, and transcriptional differences in seeds of different Perilla varieties and revealed the core regulatory network of ALA biosynthesis. These findings provide valuable candidate genes and a theoretical foundation for elucidating the molecular mechanism of high ALA accumulation and quality improvement in Perilla seeds.
Mild drought stress modulates the expression of genes involved in phenylpropanoid, flavonoid and diterpenoid biosynthetic pathways, alters antioxidant enzyme activities, and coordinately regulates the formation of drought tolerance and the accumulation of bioactive compounds in I. suzhouensis.
: Mint is notably rich in phenolic acids, flavonoids, antioxidants and other bioactive components, and is widely used as food, medicine, spices, and flavoring agents. Thus, metabolite composition serves as a critical indicator for assessing mint quality. In this study, two mint genotypes of Mentha canadensis L., were sampled, namely purple mint and green mint. The two genotypes are distinguished by stem color: the purple mint exhibits purple stems, whereas the green mint has green stems. The purple mint exhibited significantly higher anthocyanin and total flavone contents than green mint. Integrated transcriptomic and metabolomic analyses were performed to elucidate the regulatory mechanisms underlying pigment and flavonoid accumulation in mint stems. High-throughput RNA-Seq yielded 167,901 unigenes, of which 34,608 genes were differentially expressed. These differentially expressed genes (DEGs) were mainly involved in the lignin metabolic process and flavonoid biosynthetic process. A total of 143 differentially expressed metabolites (DEMs) were enriched in isoflavonoid, flavonoid biosynthesis, flavone and flavonol biosynthesis, and anthocyanin biosynthesis pathways. Co-analysis of DEGs and DEMs revealed that the flavone and flavonol biosynthesis pathway (ko00944) contained the most DEMs, followed by the flavonoid biosynthesis pathway (ko00941) and the anthocyanin biosynthesis pathway (ko00942). Furthermore, nine key genes and metabolites were identified using the O2PLS model. These findings provide a theoretical basis for understanding the key pathways and genes involved in pigment and flavonoid regulation in mint stems.
Xiang-Dong Wang, Hai-Long An, Yan-Zhi Ma et al.· Phyton· 0 citations
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