The Effect of Topo-Climate Variation on the Secondary Metabolism of Berries in White Grapevine Varieties (Vitis vinifera)

Kelem Gashu,Chao Song,Moshe Sagi,Nurit Agam,Aaron Fait,Amnon Bustan,Arvind Kumar Dubey,Tania Acuña

doi:10.3389/fpls.2022.847268

Kelem Gashu, Chao Song + Show 6 more

Open Access

https://doi.org/10.3389/fpls.2022.847268

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Abstract

Exploiting consistent differences in radiation and average air temperature between two experimental vineyards (Ramat Negev, RN and Mitzpe Ramon, MR), we examined the impact of climate variations on total carotenoids, redox status, and phenylpropanoid metabolism in the berries of 10 white wine grapevine (Vitis vinifera) cultivars across three consecutive seasons (2017–2019). The differences in carotenoid and phenylpropanoid contents between sites were seasonal and varietal dependent. However, the warmer RN site was generally associated with higher H2O2 levels and carotenoid degradation, and lower flavonol contents than the cooler MR site. Enhanced carotenoid degradation was positively correlated with radiation and daily degree days, leading to a greater drop in content from véraison to harvest in Colombard, Sauvignon Blanc, and Semillon berries. Analyses of berry H2O2 and phenylpropanoids suggested differences between cultivars in the links between H2O2 and flavonol contents. Generally, however, grapes with higher H2O2 content seem to have lower flavonol contents. Correlative network analyses revealed that phenylpropanoids at the warmer RN site are tightly linked to the radiation and temperature regimes during fruit ripening, indicating potentially harmful effect of warmer climates on berry quality. Specifically, flavan-3-ols were negatively correlated with radiation at RN. Principal component analysis showed that Muscat Blanc, Riesling, Semillon, and Sauvignon Blanc were the most site sensitive cultivars. Our results suggest that grapevine biodiversity is likely the key to withstand global warming hazards.

Highlights

By the end of the 21st century, mean global air temperature is expected to rise between 1.5 and 2◦C in most of the world’s wine-growing regions (Ullah et al, 2020)
The lowest (43.4 mg g−1 DW) carotenoid level was measured in Semillon berries at Mitzpe Ramon (MR) in 2017 (Supplementary Table 1)
We show that differences between the warmer Ramat Negev (RN) site and the cooler MR site were strongly dependent on genotype, developmental stage, and seasonal variations (Figure 1 and Supplementary Table 1)

Summary

Introduction

By the end of the 21st century, mean global air temperature is expected to rise between 1.5 and 2◦C in most of the world’s wine-growing regions (Ullah et al, 2020). As fruits transpire only sparingly, their ability to regulate surface temperature is limited, they commonly experience sunburn, dehydration, photo-oxidative damage, berry shriveling, and metabolite disorders when exposed to elevated air temperatures or excessive solar irradiance (Greer and Weston, 2010; Krasnow et al, 2010; Reshef et al, 2019; Rustioni et al, 2020). Upon such environmental stress, fruits use complex mechanisms to maintain their development and protect themselves from damaging processes. The balance between oxidant and antioxidant chemical production in fruit can be disrupted in a harsh environment, leading to cellular damage due to the overproduction of reactive oxygen species (ROS; Gill and Tuteja, 2010; Decros et al, 2019), with a consequent negative effect on fruit metabolism and commercial quality

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