2019 ASHS Annual Conference

This study was conducted to investigate genetic factors associated with postharvest storability of five strawberry fruit cultivars (Seolhyang, Durihyang, Kingsberry, Sunnyberry, and Maehyang). Fruit were harvested for each cultivar according to fruit size and coloration (small-green, medium-green, large-pink, and large-red). Large-red fruit for each cultivar were stored at 10℃ for 10 d to evaluate postharvest storability. Both firmness and decay were evaluated as major postharvest storability factors in our study. The firmness of Sunnyberry maintained longest for up to 10 d, but firmness of Kingsberry decreased most rapidly. The decay rate of Kingsberry was the highest (33%) and 6.6 times higher than that (5%) Sunnyberry. Our results showed that among five cultivars, the postharvest life of Sunnyberry and Kingsberry was the longest and shortest, respectively, so we used two cultivars for transcriptomic analysis to investigate the genetic factors associated with postharvest storability. Because changes in mRNA levels during fruit ripening and senescence could affect the postharvest storability of strawberry fruit, both green and red fruit stages for each cultivar were used for transcriptome analysis. In Kingsberry, expressions of cell wall degradation and secondary metabolism-related genes significantly increased during ripening, but not in Sunnyberry. Expressions of transporter genes highly upregulated in Sunnyberry compared to those in Kingsberry, especially in the red stage. Therefore, it is expected that the storability of Sunnyberry can be maintained longer during postharvest period by expressing cell wall degradation and secondary metabolism-related genes much less and by promoting the transport and accumulation of nutrients more actively than Kingsberry. This work was supported by the Rural Development Administration (RDA, PJ013648042019), Republic of Korea.