The fast-ripening process of Prunus persica fruits poses a challenge to their international marketability. Cold storage (CS) is an effective practice for extending fruit shelf-life, but it can lead to physiological disorders known as chilling injuries (CIs), which manifest as symptoms like flesh mealiness, bleeding, and browning. Implementing controlled atmospheric (CA) conditions with elevated CO2 and low O2 concentrations, combined with CS, effectively reduce the incidence of CIs. This study aims to provide new insights into CI development in P. persica fruits during CS using a transcriptomic approach. For this purpose, we stored ‘Fantasia’ nectarines, with known susceptibility to CIs, for 3 weeks under CS, both with and without CA. Fruits were evaluated at harvest (E1), after 3 days of shelf-life (E2), after 3 weeks of CS with (E3CA) and without (E3) CA, and 3 days of shelf-life after storage (E4 and E4CA). Physiological parameters were assessed, and transcriptomic changes were analyzed. Additionally, we performed a de novo genome assembly of the ‘Fantasia’ cultivar using PacBio HiFi reads, complemented with Illumina short reads. During shelf-life, CA treatment improved the quality of ‘Fantasia’ nectarines after CS, especially for reducing internal breakdown. Concordantly, CA-treated fruits (E4CA) exhibited a transcriptomic profile similar to that of non-stored fruits (E2) during ripening. Significant transcriptomic changes occurred during storage, even in the absence of phenotypic variation between storage conditions. Gene Ontology (GO) analysis indicated that CA alleviates CIs by a multi-layered gene regulation involving transcriptional adjustments, chromatin remodeling and RNAi-mediated post-transcriptional silencing, that prevent the activation of stress-related pathways. We will further investigate epigenetic responses, including DNA methylation and post-transcriptional histone modifications, to better understand CA-related effects on CIs.
Reducing chilling injuries in nectarines: the role of controlled atmosphere and its molecular mechanisms
Varotto, S.;Bonghi, C.
2026
Abstract
The fast-ripening process of Prunus persica fruits poses a challenge to their international marketability. Cold storage (CS) is an effective practice for extending fruit shelf-life, but it can lead to physiological disorders known as chilling injuries (CIs), which manifest as symptoms like flesh mealiness, bleeding, and browning. Implementing controlled atmospheric (CA) conditions with elevated CO2 and low O2 concentrations, combined with CS, effectively reduce the incidence of CIs. This study aims to provide new insights into CI development in P. persica fruits during CS using a transcriptomic approach. For this purpose, we stored ‘Fantasia’ nectarines, with known susceptibility to CIs, for 3 weeks under CS, both with and without CA. Fruits were evaluated at harvest (E1), after 3 days of shelf-life (E2), after 3 weeks of CS with (E3CA) and without (E3) CA, and 3 days of shelf-life after storage (E4 and E4CA). Physiological parameters were assessed, and transcriptomic changes were analyzed. Additionally, we performed a de novo genome assembly of the ‘Fantasia’ cultivar using PacBio HiFi reads, complemented with Illumina short reads. During shelf-life, CA treatment improved the quality of ‘Fantasia’ nectarines after CS, especially for reducing internal breakdown. Concordantly, CA-treated fruits (E4CA) exhibited a transcriptomic profile similar to that of non-stored fruits (E2) during ripening. Significant transcriptomic changes occurred during storage, even in the absence of phenotypic variation between storage conditions. Gene Ontology (GO) analysis indicated that CA alleviates CIs by a multi-layered gene regulation involving transcriptional adjustments, chromatin remodeling and RNAi-mediated post-transcriptional silencing, that prevent the activation of stress-related pathways. We will further investigate epigenetic responses, including DNA methylation and post-transcriptional histone modifications, to better understand CA-related effects on CIs.
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