Hydrogen Sulfide Inhibits Fruit Softening by Regulating Ethylene Synthesis and Signaling Pathway in Tomato (Solanum lycopersicum)

Abstract

<jats:p>Hydrogen sulfide (H<jats:sub>2</jats:sub>S) has been proven to be a multifunctional signaling molecule in plants. In this study, we attempted to explore the effects of H<jats:sub>2</jats:sub>S on the climacteric fruit tomato during postharvest storage. H<jats:sub>2</jats:sub>S fumigation for 1 d was found to delay the peel color transition from green to red and decreased fruit firmness induced by ethylene. Further investigation showed that H<jats:sub>2</jats:sub>S fumigation downregulated the activities and gene expressions of cell wall–degrading enzymes pectin lyase (PL), polygalacturonase (PG), and cellulase. Furthermore, H<jats:sub>2</jats:sub>S fumigation downregulated the expression of ethylene biosynthesis genes <jats:italic>SlACS2</jats:italic> and <jats:italic>SlACS3.</jats:italic> Ethylene treatment for 1 d was found to induce the expression of <jats:italic>SlACO1, SlACO3</jats:italic>, and <jats:italic>SlACO4</jats:italic> genes, whereas the increase was significantly inhibited by H<jats:sub>2</jats:sub>S combined with ethylene. Furthermore, H<jats:sub>2</jats:sub>S decreased the transcript accumulation of ethylene receptor genes <jats:italic>SlETR5</jats:italic> and <jats:italic>SlETR6</jats:italic> and ethylene transcription factors <jats:italic>SlCRF2</jats:italic> and <jats:italic>SlERF2</jats:italic>. The correlation analysis suggested that the fruit firmness was negatively correlated with ethylene biosynthesis and signaling pathway. The current study showed that exogenous H<jats:sub>2</jats:sub>S could inhibit the synthesis of endogenous ethylene and regulate ethylene signal transduction, thereby delaying fruit softening and the ripening process of tomato fruit during postharvest storage.</jats:p>

Hydrogen sulfide (H2S) signaling in plant development and stress responses

“…H 2 S treatment could prolong the storage time of “ Red Fuji ” apple, and delay the ripening of apple fruit by suppressing the expression of ethylene synthesis-related genes ( MdACS1 , MdACS3 , MdACO1 and MdACO2 ) and signal transduction genes ( MdETR1 , MdERS1 , MdERS2 , MdERF3 , MdERF4 and MdERF5 ) (Zheng et al 2016 ). Similarly, H 2 S inhibits the expression of ethylene-related genes ( SlACO1 , SlACO3 , SlACO4 ; SlETR5 , SlETR6 , SlCRF2 , and SlERF2 ) in tomato (Hu et al 2019 ). Compared with the control, H 2 S treatment down-regulated the ethylene biosynthesis genes ( MaACS1 , MaACS2 , MaACO 1 and pectin lyase MaPL ), while up-regulated the ethylene receptor genes ( MaETR , MaERS1 and MaERS2 ) in banana fruit (Ge et al 2017 ).…”

Harnessing the power of hydrogen sulphide (H2S) for improving fruit quality traits

“…One of the best-studied mechanisms to enhance fruit shelf life through H 2 S treatment is suppression of ethylene biosynthesis and signalling (Zheng et al 2016). H 2 S fumigation can delay the ripening and extend the fruit shelf life by reducing expression of ethylene biosynthesis genes ACS and ACO, ethylene receptor gene ETR1, ethylene response sensor 1 (ERS1) and ethylene response factors (ERFs) (Zheng et al 2016;Hu et al 2019).…”

Hydrogen Sulfide Maintained the Good Appearance and Nutrition in Post-harvest Tomato Fruits by Antagonizing the Effect of Ethylene

“…In our recent studies, H 2 S was found to alleviate tomato fruit ripening by reducing ROS accumulation, and meanwhile ethylene biosynthesis and signaling pathway were inhibited by H 2 S (Yao et al, 2018;Hu et al, 2019). Though H 2 S has been found to be a senescence regulator in diverse fruits and vegetables, the mechanism of exogenous H 2 S in affecting the bioactive compounds of ethylene-induced tomato fruit ripening and senescence is still obscure.…”