Different ways of becoming soft: Elucidating softening and cell wall disassembly in the core and external zones of strawberry receptacle along storage

DAGLIO YASMIN; PONCE NORA M.A.; ORTIZ, CRISTIAN M.; STORTZ CARLOS A.; VICENTE ARIEL R.

Social Science Research Network

ELSEVIER

Año: 2023

Softening is one of the most significant changes determining the quality and postharvestlife in strawberry. Though some studies have attempted to characterize the cell wallmodifications accompanying firmness loss during storage, the reports on polysaccharidedisassembly are widely variable. Herein, we determined the changes in firmness, stiffnessand cell wall composition in the Core and External zone of strawberry during storage.Core tissues were firmer and stiffer and softened more than the External zone. Softeningoccurred in the fruit Core with a large loss of non-cellulosic polysaccharides. Remarkabledifferences in wall degradation were identified between regions: firmness loss in theExternal zone occurred with extensive solubilization of hemicelluloses and pectin andmassive arabinose loss, but very limited depolymerization. In contrast, the ore showedsubstantial depolymerization of both hemicelluloses and polyuronides. Results fullydissect, for the first time, postharvest wall disassembly in the strawberry Core andExternal region.