The association between metabolic status and susceptibility to Botrytis cinerea in strawberry fruit

Abstract

Primary and secondary metabolites of strawberry fruit may play roles in stimulating or reducing the susceptibility to Botrytis cinerea. The relations between physical and chemical characteristics (e.g., color, firmness, volatile and non-volatile metabolites) of red ripe strawberries and the natural spoilage caused by B. cinerea were investigated. The spoilage rates differed between genotypes, and this was consistent over two successive years. Among seventeen genotypes, a more intense red coloration of the fruit skin was associated with a lower spoilage rate. Additionally, weakly negative correlations were found between the levels of anthocyanins, ascorbic acid, malic acid and spoilage rates. No clear correlations were found between spoilage rates and soluble sugars, most volatiles, firmness and dry weight percentage. High levels of two volatile compounds, ethyl butanoate and 1-hexanol, were correlated to high spoilage rates. These characteristics may assist strawberry breeders in selecting for genotypes with reduced susceptibility to B. cinerea.