Chapter 3 - Effect of Elicitors in the Nutritional and Sensorial Quality of Fruits and Vegetables

Abstract

Phytochemicals are a group of compounds found in fruits and vegetables with different proven health benefits to consumers. There is evidence of different strategies to enhance the concentration of these compounds; one of these approaches is the use of elicitors. Elicitation has been used to trigger different defense responses in plants, which lead to different mechanisms, such as activation of enzymes related with secondary metabolism. Enzymes like phenylalanine ammonia lyase (PAL), l-galactono-1,4-lactone dehydrogenase (l-GalLDH), lycopene β-cyclase (LCYB) and gamma tocopherol methyl transferase (γ-TMT) have been activated by the application of an elicitor in different plants. In this chapter, the effects of different elicitors on the activation of enzymes involved in generation of secondary metabolites as protective compounds are discussed.