Chen Yao, Tang Xuemei, Fei Zhangjun, Giovannoni James J
Boyce Thompson Institute for Plant Research, Cornell University, Ithaca, NY 14853.
US Department of Agriculture-Agricultural Research Service Robert W. Holley Center for Agriculture and Health, Cornell University, Ithaca, NY 14853.
Hortic Res. 2024 Jul 22;11(9):uhae199. doi: 10.1093/hr/uhae199. eCollection 2024 Sep.
It is well known that if a fruit is harvested extremely early its development and function are interrupted, and it may never attain full maturity and optimal quality. Reports revealing insights regarding the alterations of maturation, ripening and postharvest quality in very early picked fruits are rare. We examined the effects of early harvesting on tomatoes by characterizing different accessions at the molecular, physiological, and biochemical levels. We found that even very early-harvested fruits could achieve postharvest maturation and ripening though with some defects in pigment and cuticle formation, and seeds from very early-harvested fruits could still germinate and develop as normal and healthy plants. One critical regulator of tomato cuticle integrity, , was shown to contribute to cuticle defects in very early-harvested fruits. Very early fruit harvest still allowing ripening and seed development indicate that the genetic and physiological programs of later maturation and ripening are set into motion early in fruit development and are not dependent on complete fruit expansion nor attachment to the plant.
众所周知，如果果实采收过早，其发育和功能就会中断，可能永远无法达到完全成熟和最佳品质。关于极早期采摘果实成熟、后熟和采后品质变化的相关见解报告很少。我们通过在分子、生理和生化水平上对不同品种进行表征，研究了早期采收对番茄的影响。我们发现，即使是极早期采收的果实，虽然在色素和角质层形成方面存在一些缺陷，但仍能实现采后成熟和后熟，而且极早期采收果实的种子仍能正常发芽并发育成健康植株。番茄角质层完整性的一个关键调节因子被证明导致了极早期采收果实的角质层缺陷。极早期果实采收仍能使果实后熟和种子发育，这表明后期成熟和后熟的遗传和生理程序在果实发育早期就已启动，并不依赖于果实的完全膨大或与植株的附着。
