The role of dormancy, temperature and light in the regulation of seed germination of four annual Asteraceae from south-western Australia was investigated. The experiments aimed to identify after-ripening patterns, and to relate these to climatic conditions of the habitat in which the species occur. Seeds of all species were strongly dormant at maturity and maintained high levels of dormancy for...

In spite of being the leading producer of mango in the world, India registers the highest post harvest losses and minuscule exports. The reasons for this paradox are manifold. However, issues related to quarantine, shelf life and quality are the major stumbling blocks to trade, both national and international Therefore, a balance between the required effective dose and tolerance of fruit to irr...

Ethylene plays an important role in wide-ranging aspects of plant growth and development, includingfruit ripening, leaf and flower senescence. In this study, the expression patterns of two genes involved in theethylene signal transduction pathway (RhCTR1 and RhCTR2) were investigated during the flower openingstages in two Rosa hybrida cultivars, ‘Black magic’ and ‘Maroussia’, ...

The study of changes of nutritional value of fruit during the ripening process can help estimate the optimal date for fruit harvesting to achieve the best quality for direct consumption and further utilization. The aim of this study was to monitor the changes of chemical composition of medlar fruit (Mespilus germanica L.) measured at five various ripening stages including 134, 144, 154, 164 and...

Lactobacillus helveticus, a ubiquitous bacterial species in natural whey cultures (NWCs) used for Swiss Gruyère cheese production, is considered to have crucial functions for cheese ripening such as enhancing proteolysis. We tracked the diversity and abundance of L. helveticus strains during 6 months of ripening in eight Swiss Gruyère-type cheeses using a culture-independent typing method. The ...

Sugars, organic acids and volatiles of apricot were determined by HPLC and GC-MS during fruit development and ripening, and the key taste and aroma components were identified by integrating flavor compound contents with consumers' evaluation. Sucrose and glucose were the major sugars in apricot fruit. The contents of all sugars increased rapidly, and the accumulation pattern of sugars converted...

Bacterial metabolism of Tyr and Phe has been associated with the formation of aromatic compounds that impart barny-utensil and floral off-flavors in cheese. In an effort to identify possible mechanisms for the origin of these compounds in Cheddar cheese, we investigated Tyr and Phe catabolism by Lactobacillus casei and Lactobacillus helveticus cheese flavor adjuncts under simulated Cheddar chee...

The rate at which tomato fruits ripe was investigated via the biosynthesis of lycopene in two tomato varieties under the conditions of field and ambient temperature ripening. Results showed that the biosynthesis of lycopene follows a first-order kinetics in both varieties with calculated rate constants of 1.2×10-2 and 1.4×10-2 d-1 for Ibadan local and Roma types respectively under the field rip...

BACKGROUND Weather conditions can selectively promote the growth of particular fungal species, which cause rotting and spoilage of grape berries before harvest. The presence of pathogenic fungi can lead to the development of opportunist microfungi that can produce mycotoxins and cause grapes and wine contamination. OBJECTIVE The variation of climatic conditions allowed to design a pilot study...