Peach fruits [Prumus persica (L.) Batsch, cv. Yuhuasanhao] were used as materials to investigate the changes of reactive oxygen species (ROS) and related enzymes in mitochondria respiration during storage and then their influence on senescence of harvested Peach fruits was studied. The results showed that low temperature (5℃) strongly inhibited the reduction of firmness and the increase in respiration rate. During storage at ambient temperature (20℃), ROS had a cumulative process while malondialdehye (MDA) content continued to increase in associated with enhanced membrane lipid peroxidation. Lipoxygenase (LOX) activity was strongly inhibited under the low temperature condition. The activities of succinic dehydrogenase (SDH), cytochrome C oxidase (CCO), and Ca2+-ATPase declined to a certain extent at ambient temperature, while they showed higher activities at low temperature, which may be related to lower membrane lipid peroxidation at low temperature. Higher Ca2+ content at ambient temperature may be responsible for impairment of mitochondrial function, thus, leading to fruit senescence. The results showed that under low temperature condition, the low accumulation of ROS and the low level of membrane lipid peroxidation could maintain the function of mitochondria that would help to delay the senescence of peach fruits. These suggested a close relationship existed between ROS metabolism and mitochondrial respiration. It can be inferred that the low temperature helps to delay senescence of peach fruits via suppression of ROS and related enzymes, maintain better homeostasis of Ca2+ in mitochondria and thus better mitochondrial functions.
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