Suppression of sugar accumulation in coleoptile and mesocotyl cells by light irradiation to etiolated maize seedlings.

Sugar accumulation in maize (Zea mays) coleoptile and mesocotyl cells was suppressed when etiolated seedlings were subjected to white light irradiation. Regulation mechanisms of sugar accumulation by light in cells of both organs were studied. Sucrose exudation from the endosperm was suppressed in light-treated seedlings. In addition, the activities and transcript levels of sucrose-phosphate synthase (SPS) in scutella were decreased following light irradiation. These results suggest that sucrose exudation from the endosperm is decreased by the suppression of SPS activities via downregulation of its gene expression. In coleoptiles and mesocotyls, light irradiation also decreased the activities and transcript levels of cell wall-bound invertase, suggesting that phloem unloading processes were suppressed. Thus, inhibition of both sucrose loading from the endosperm and sucrose unloading in coleoptiles and mesocotyls may be involved in the suppression of sugar accumulation in coleoptiles and mesocotyls irradiated with white light.

Lignin Accumulation in Three Pumelo Cultivars in Association with Sucrose and Energy Depletion.

Lignification, which occurs in many horticultural fruit and vegetables, brings about undesirable texture and unfavorable consumer preference. However, this problem has rarely been studied. In this work, three pumelo cultivars cvs "Hongroumiyou" (HR), "Bairoumiyou" (BR), and "Huangroumiyou" (HuR) were stored at 25 °C for 90 days, and juice sacs were sampled to explore the lignin accumulation and its relationship to sucrose and energy depletion were investigated. The results displayed that HuR contained lower sucrose content, lower ATP level, but higher lignin content compared to BR and HR during postharvest storage, indicating that the sequence according to storage resistance on the basis of lignin content is as follows: HuR < BR < HR. Furthermore, sucrose degradation attributed to enhanced activities of neutral invertase (NI), soluble acid invertase (S-AI), cell wall-bound invertase (B-AI), and energy deficit on account of declined ATP level, showed significantly negative correlation with lignin accumulation, suggesting that lignin accumulation occurrence could induce sucrose degradation and energy deficit during postharvest storage. Additionally, higher activities of phenylalanine ammonia-lyase (PAL), polyphenol oxidase (PPO), peroxidase (POD) could accelerate lignin synthesis and resulted in lignin accumulation during postharvest pumelo storage.