Abstract
Potato tubers (Solanum tuberosum L.) are usually stored at low temperature, which can suppress sprouting and control the occurrence of diseases. However, low temperatures lead potatoes to easily suffer from cold-induced sweetening (CIS), which has a negative effect on food processing. The aim of this research was to investigate potential treatments on controlling CIS in potatoes during postharvest storage. “Atlantic” potatoes were treated with gibberellin and (S)-carvone, respectively, and stored at 4 °C for 90 days. The results showed that gibberellin can significantly accelerate sprouting and sugar accumulation by regulating expressions of ADP-glucose pyrophosphorylase (AGPase), granule-bound starch synthase (GBSS), β-amylase (BAM1/2), UDP-glucose pyrophosphorylase (UGPase) and invertase inhibitor (INH1/2) genes. The opposite effects were found in the (S)-carvone treatment group, where CIS was inhibited by modulation of the expressions of GBSS and INH1/2 genes. In summary, gibberellin treatment can promote sugar accumulation while (S)-carvone treatment has some effects on alleviating sugar accumulation. Thus, (S)-carvone can be considered as a potential inhibitor of some of the sugars which are vital in controlling CIS in potatoes. However, the chemical concentration, treatment time, and also the treatment method needs to be optimized before industrial application.
Highlights
Potato (Solanum tuberosum L.) is widely consumed as a staple food and snack
As a major raw material of potato chips, “Atlantic” potato tubers have faced a great challenge in how to tackle with the problem of cold-induced sweetening (CIS) during their storage
Our results indicated that gibberellin treatment shortened potato tubers’ dormancy, promoted the growth of sprouts and accelerated the accumulation of sugars
Summary
Potato (Solanum tuberosum L.) is widely consumed as a staple food and snack. It contains plenty of nutrients and plays a crucial role in the food processing industry. Several factors contribute to potato tuber dormancy, including variety, maturity status of the tubers at harvest, the tuber growth environment, post-harvest storage conditions, injury and exposure to endogenous and applied dormancy-breaking compounds [2]. Of these factors, genetic control (variety) may be the most significant [3]. Low temperatures during storage can prolong the dormancy period, they generally result in an increase in reducing sugar content, primarily glucose, which is undesirable in the processing industry due to darkening of fried products [2] This process is known as cold-induced sweetening (CIS). It can promote the formation of Molecules 2018, 23, 3118; doi:10.3390/molecules23123118 www.mdpi.com/journal/molecules
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