Accumulation of anthocyanins in tomato skin extends shelf life

Claudia Kiferle,Henk‐jan Schoonbeek,Cathie Martin,Pierdomenico Perata,Yang Zhang,Laura Bassolino

doi:10.1111/nph.12524

Abstract

Shelf life is one of the most important traits for the tomato (Solanum lycopersicum) industry. Two key factors, post-harvest over-ripening and susceptibility to post-harvest pathogen infection, determine tomato shelf life. Anthocyanins accumulate in the skin of Aft/Aft atv/atv tomatoes, the result of introgressing alleles affecting anthocyanin biosynthesis in fruit from two wild relatives of tomato, which results in extended fruit shelf life. Compared with ordinary, anthocyanin-less tomatoes, the fruits of Aft/Aft atv/atv keep longer during storage and are less susceptible to Botrytis cinerea, a major tomato pathogen, post-harvest. Using genetically modified tomatoes over-producing anthocyanins, we confirmed that skin-specific accumulation of anthocyanins in tomato is sufficient to reduce the susceptibility of fruit to Botrytis cinerea. Our data indicate that accumulation of anthocyanins in tomato fruit, achieved either by traditional breeding or genetic engineering can be an effective way to extend tomato shelf life.

Highlights

Shelf-life is one of the most important agronomic traits for tomato (Solanum lycopersicum) and is determined by two components, fruit softening during over-ripening and susceptibility to opportunistic pathogens
Other studies have been directed at increasing the production of antioxidants such as polyamines, because their accumulation is associated with extended shelf life (Valero et al, 2002).The ethylene burst is the key event signaling the onset of ripening in climacteric fruits such as tomato
We show that the accumulation of anthocyanins in Aft/Aft atv/atv tomatoes, which is predominantly in the skin, is associated with extended shelf life

Summary

Introduction

Shelf-life is one of the most important agronomic traits for tomato (Solanum lycopersicum) and is determined by two components, fruit softening during over-ripening and susceptibility to opportunistic pathogens. Better known as gray mold, is the second most important fungal pathogen of plants, economically (Dean et al, 2012). Botrytis cinerea can infect vegetables (cabbage, lettuce and broccoli) and fruit crops (grape, red fruit and tomato), as well as a large number of shrubs, trees, flowers, and weeds (Williamson et al, 2007). Several different strategies have been employed to extend tomato shelf life. Other studies have been directed at increasing the production of antioxidants such as polyamines, because their accumulation is associated with extended shelf life (Valero et al, 2002).The ethylene burst is the key event signaling the onset of ripening in climacteric fruits such as tomato. Manipulation of ethylene biosynthesis and signaling has resulted in varieties with delayed ripening (Vicente et al, 2007)

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