BACKGROUND Cherry fruit cracking is a costly problem for cherry growers. The effect of repeated sprayings (gibberellic acid – GA3; abscisic acid – ABA; salicylic acid – SA; glycine betaine – GB, and Ascophyllum nodosum – AN) combined with CaCl2, on ‘Sweetheart’ cherry fruit‐cracking characteristics was investigated. Cracking was quantified in terms of cracking incidence, crack morphology, confocal scanning laser microscopy, cuticular wax content, cell‐wall modification, and cuticular wax gene expression. RESULTS All spray treatments reduced cracking compared with an untreated control (H2O), with fewer cheek cracks. The least cracking incidence was observed for ABA + CaCl2‐ and GB + CaCl2‐treated fruits, indicating an added benefit compared to spraying with CaCl2 alone. In addition, GB + CaCl2‐treated fruits showed higher fruit diameter. ABA + CaCl2 and GB + CaCl2 sprays showed higher wax content and higher cuticle and epidermal thickness compared with the control, including increased expression of wax synthase (ABA + CaCl2) and expansin 1 (GB + CaCl2). CONCLUSION In general, factors that improve the cuticle thickness appear to be important at the fruit‐coloring stage. At the fruit‐ripening stage, larger cell sizes of the epidermis, hypodermis, and parenchyma cells lower cracking incidence, indicating the importance of flexibility and elasticity of the epidermis. © 2020 Society of Chemical Industry

The cherry rootstock influences the performance of the scion cultivar. It has an effect on cherry fruit quality, tree growth, yield and yield efficiency and floral and foliar nutrition. In this work, the influence of Saint Lucie 64 and Maxma 60 rootstocks on the fruit quality traits of cv. Early Bigi was evaluated. For this, several parameters, namely fruit weight (FW) and size (FS), soluble solids content (SSC), pH, titratable acidity (TA), flesh firmness (FF), epidermis rupture force (ERF), color and sensory profile, were assessed. Results showed that the fruits from trees on Saint Lucie 64 presented higher FF and ERF values and, consequently, better texture. On the other hand, fruits from trees on Maxma 60 showed sweeter cherries (higher SSC). Moreover, these trees presented the darkest cherries (lower values of L*, a*, b*, C* and hue°) and the highest SSC. Therefore, although the trees on Saint Lucie 64 produced firmer cherries, it was those with the Maxma 60 rootstock that produced sweeter and darker fruits. In conclusion, both scion–rootstock combinations proved to be good options for the region of Resende.

Several fleshy fruits are highly affected by cracking, a severe physiological disorder that compromises their quality and causes high economical losses to the producers. Cracking can occur due to physiological, genetic or environmental factors and may happen during fruit growth, development and ripening. Moreover, in fleshy fruits, exocarp plays an important role, acting as a mechanical protective barrier, defending against biotic or abiotic factors. Thus, when biochemical properties of the cuticle + epidermis + hypodermis are affected, cracks appear in the fruit skin. The identification of genes involved in development such as cell wall modifications, biosynthesis and transport of cuticular waxes, cuticular membrane deposition and associated transcription factors provides new insights to better understand how fruit cracking is affected by genetic factors. Amongst the major environmental stresses causing cracking are excessive water during fruit development, leading to imbalances in cations such as Ca. This review focus on expression of key genes in these pathways, in their influence in affected fruits and the potential for molecular breeding programs, aiming to develop cultivars more resistant to cracking under adverse environmental conditions.

Breast cancer is the most diagnosed cancer among women, and a leading cause of death worldwide. Santolina chamaecyparissus L. is a plant with multiple health benefits, including anticancer and anti-diabetic properties. This study aimed to assess the chemopreventive effects of S. chamaecyparissus aqueous extract (SCE) in an animal model of mammary cancer. A total of 28 four-week-old female Wistar rats were divided into four groups: control, MNU-induced (IND), SCE-supplemented (SCE), and SCE+IND. SCE was added to drinking water (12.72 mg/kg body weight) ad libitum. MNU was administered via the intraperitoneal route at 50 days of age. Weekly monitoring of body weight, food/drink intake, humane endpoints, and number of mammary tumours were recorded. Twenty weeks after MNU administration, animals were sacrificed by anaesthetic overdose and a necropsy was performed. Blood samples were used to determine blood count and serum biochemistry analysis, while kidney and liver samples were analysed for oxidative stress. Tumour samples were collected for gene expression and histology studies. SCE chemical composition was analysed by LC-MS and contained 19 phenolic compounds, with the most abundant being myricetin-O-glucuronide and 1,3-O-dicaffeoylquinic acid. Two animals in the IND group were sacrificed due to exceeding the humane endpoint limits. SCE supplementation delayed mammary tumour development, reducing its volume and weight. SCE had a positive impact on haematological parameters, particularly the neutrophil-lymphocyte ratio (P=0.026). No significant differences were observed in serum biochemistry, except for creatinine kinase MB, or in oxidative stress markers. Gene expression analysis showed significantly reduced VEGF expression levels (P=0.0158) in tumours from SCE+IND. These findings suggest that SCE is deserving of further study to identify the individual compounds and to understand its influence on animal models during cancer development.

Mycobiota are essential to the health of any living being, creating a balanced and complex interaction between bacteria, the immune system and the tissue cells of the host. Talaromyces marneffei (also known as Penicillium marneffei) is a dimorphic fungus, endemic in South Asia, that often causes a life-threatening systemic fungal infection (called penicilliosis), particularly in immunocompromised hosts. Nasal swabs from 73 healthy volunteers were analysed to characterise their mycobiota, through its cultural characteristics, morphology and molecular methods (PCR). All volunteers were also asked to answer to an anonymous questionnaire. Three women were positive (and asymptomatic) for T. marneffei. One of them was reported to have lupus. This study contributes to improving our knowledge about human normal mycobiota, identifying mycotic agents that may cause complicated systemic infections (as T. marneffei), especially in immunosuppressed patients, as well as other possible risk factors of exposure or prognosis.