Quantitative lipidomics reveals lipid differences among peach (Prunus persica L. Batsch) fruits with varying textures

Abstract

In this study, we aimed to identify potentially different lipids in ripe peaches with different textures through a comprehensive, quantitative lipidomic analysis using LC-MS/MS. By analyzing 27 different cultivars, we detected 282 lipid species across 23 subclasses, including 118 significantly different lipids (DLs) among the different fruit texture groups. Lipids primarily consist of fatty acyls, followed by glycerophospholipids, glycerolipids, sphingolipids, and sterol lipids. PCA and OPLS-DA analyses demonstrated that peach fruit lipids differed significantly depending on flesh texture. Four phosphatidylethanolamines, three phosphatidylcholines, one lysophosphatidylethanolamine, one sterol ester, one sterol glycoside, and four ceramides were highly correlated with peach flesh firmness, crispness, and compactness. Glycerolipid and glycerophospholipid metabolism are the most prominent metabolic pathways for DLs, followed by sphingolipid and inositol phosphate metabolism. Our study helps identify novel targets for fruit texture improvement and provides new perspectives on the regulation of peach storage and transportation quality.