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Ripening & Senescence of FN V

Fruit ripening is a complex process involving physiological and biochemical changes that make fruits attractive for seed dispersal and human consumption, culminating in senescence. Ripening is categorized into climacteric and non-climacteric types, with climacteric fruits showing increased respiration and ethylene production, while non-climacteric fruits do not. Various plant hormones, particularly ethylene, auxins, and abscisic acid, play significant roles in regulating these processes, influencing the timing and quality of fruit ripening.

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10 views3 pages

Ripening & Senescence of FN V

Fruit ripening is a complex process involving physiological and biochemical changes that make fruits attractive for seed dispersal and human consumption, culminating in senescence. Ripening is categorized into climacteric and non-climacteric types, with climacteric fruits showing increased respiration and ethylene production, while non-climacteric fruits do not. Various plant hormones, particularly ethylene, auxins, and abscisic acid, play significant roles in regulating these processes, influencing the timing and quality of fruit ripening.

Uploaded by

shishiryash2007
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RIPENING & SENESCENCE OF FRUITS and VEGETABLES

Fruit ripening is probably one of the more complex developmental processes by which a
plant organ suffers profound physiological and biochemical transformations. During early
phases of growth and development, fleshy fruits are green, accumulate water and nutrients,
and are covered by thick epidermal layers providing protection for seed. After fruit
development has been completed, ripening evolves a series of transformations characterized
by changes in color, texture, aroma, nutrients, etc. making the fruit attractive for predators to
facilitate seed dispersal, and also nutritious for human consumption.
Ripening and senescence were considered as a series of degradative processes culminating
with metabolic disruption and cellular disintegration. Despite natural ripening involving
catabolic pathways and loss of cellular compartmentalization, it is generally believed that
ripening is an active and genetically regulated program by which fruit prepares the
biochemical and molecular transformations required during the last stages of development to
culminate with senescence. Many of these changes comprise the traits of fruit quality and,
therefore, understanding the biochemical and genetic basis regulating these processes have
been the subject of intensive research. Moreover, the control of fruit ripening is essential to
maintain quality and to reduce the losses during the postharvest shelf-life.
Senescence is the final stage of a fruit or vegetable's life, when it naturally degrades and loses
its flavor and texture. It occurs after the ripening stage, when the fruit has stopped growing
and is considered mature. These processes are complex and involve many molecular and
biochemical processes. They can occur on or off the plant, but the fruit is usually harvested
when it's mature or ripe.

Climacteric and Non-climacteric Ripening:


The plant hormone ethylene influences many developmental processes in plants, including
ripening and senescence, and responses to biotic and abiotic stresses. The involvement of
ethylene in fruit ripening has long been known and there are many ancestral postharvest fruit
manipulations that are now recognized as being mediated by ethylene. Based on the
respiration rate and ethylene production, fruit ripening has been classified into two types:
climacteric and non-climacteric. Climacteric fruits are characterized by an increase in the
rate of respiration and ethylene production at early stages of ripening. This climacteric
behavior is invariably associated with an autocatalytic control of ethylene production. Within
this category are banana, apple, pear, tomato, avocado, melon, peach, kiwi, etc. By contrast,
non-climacteric fruits are those in which no increase or reduction in the respiration rate and
ethylene production takes place during the whole ripening period, and includes fruit such as
strawberry and other berries, citrus fruits, grapes, and cherry. Then, the increase in
respiration appears not to be a strict requirement for fruit ripening as non-climacteric fruits
suffer ripening changes similar to those of climacteric without the burst in respiration.

A second difference between climacteric and non-climacteric ripening is the response to


exogenous ethylene. In climacteric fruits, ethylene accelerates the time to reach the
maximum respiration rate, without modifying the magnitude. In non-climacteric fruits,
ethylene increases the respiratory rate in a concentration-dependent manner. Once ethylene is
removed, respiration declines to basal levels in non-climacteric fruits since they lack
autocatalytic ethylene production, but in climacteric fruit, once the autocatalysis is initiated,
respiration follows at normal rates
The onset of climacteric respiration is not always coordinated with the increase in ethylene
production, it depends on the fruit species. Ethylene sensitivity appears to be a fruit-specific
feature independent of their climacteric and non-climacteric behavior and is of special
relevance during the handling and management of the fruit during the whole postharvest
chain.
Interaction with plant hormones:
The existence of a hormonal interaction in the control of fruit ripening has long been
suggested, and even ethylene action appears to be critical in climacteric fruit, however it is
still unknown if there are other hormonal signals initiating the process. In non-climacteric
fruit the involvement of other hormones controlling the process has been also suspected.
Auxins have long been recognized to affect initiation and development of ripening in fruits
of many species, and it is well documented that a reduction in indole-3- acetic acid (IAA)
concentration takes place before the onset of ripening. Moreover, exogenous auxins also
delay fruit ripening in grapes or strawberry, and inhibited the expression of some ripening-
and ethylene-dependent genes in tomato fruit.
Abscisic acid (ABA) has been demonstrated to stimulate fruit ripening in both climacteric
and non-climacteric fruits. Initial observations indicated that exogenous ABA induced
ripening in the fruit of several crops. More recently, it has been observed that ABA
stimulated accumulation of anthocyanins and reduced acidity in grapes. In other non-
climacteric fruits, such as orange or strawberry, it was also shown that ABA deficiency
delayed fruit coloration. These observations indicate that ABA may be the trigger stimuli to
initiate ripening of fruits in this ripening category. Other plant hormones, such as
gibberellins, are recognized to delay fruit ripening in citrus or tomato. Since gibberellins are
antagonists of ABA and ethylene, whether their involvement in ripening is a direct effect or
mediated by the action of these hormones remains to be determined.

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