Hydrogen sulfide treatment increases the antioxidant capacity of fresh Lingwu Long Jujube ( cv. Mill) fruit during storage.

Hydrogen sulfide (HS) has been identified as an important gaseous signal molecule in plants. Here, we investigated the effects of HS on postharvest senescence and antioxidant metabolism of Lingwu Long Jujube ( cv. Mill) fruits (LLJF). Fumigation of Jujube fruits with HS released from 0.4 mm NaHS could significantly prolong the postharvest shelf life of jujube fruits, reduce the decay rate of fruit, the weight loss of fruit, and inhibit the fruit loss, hardness, color, soluble solids, and titratable acidity. Compared with the control group, exogenous HS fumigation significantly decreased the loss of chlorophyll, carotenoids, soluble protein, ascorbic acid, phenols, and flavonoids in jujube fruits during post-harvest storage. At the same time, HS could significantly delay the accumulation of malondialdehyde (MDA), hydrogen peroxide (HO) and superoxide anion (O ) and promote catalase (CAT), superoxide dismutase (SOD), ascorbate peroxidase (APX), peroxidase (POD) activity, and inhibit polyphenol oxidase (PPO) activity. To summarize, HS can effectively alleviate postharvest senescence and decay of jujube fruits by regulating the ROS accumulation and antioxidant enzymes, and prolong the storage period of postharvest.