ISHS Acta Horticulturae 343: Physiological Basis of Postharvest Technologies
SOME PHYSIOLOGICAL AND BIOCHEMICAL CHANGES OF "GREEN RIPE" BANANAS AT RELATIVE HIGH STORAGE TEMPERATURES |
| Authors: | D. Zhang, B.Y. Huang, K.J. Scott |
| Abstract:
In South China, bananas are mainly harvested in the hot summer and autumn, and transported at ambient temperatures within sealed polyethylene bags. The bananas often are found in the marketplace showing a disorder known as "Green Ripe", which causes a large economic loss to the banana industry. Green ripe is a postharvest physiological disorder (occurring during ripening), where the pulp is already soft while the peel is still green. After Gane described this phenomenon in banana storage in 1936, several researchers such as N.N. Wade, K.J. Scott and H.B. Seymore worked on the disorder from different aspects. The high temperature and high CO2, and low O2 content in the storage atmosphere are thought to be the main factors causing this abnormal ripening, but the physiological mechanism is not very clear. Furthermore, some papers reviewed the accelerating effects of high temperatures and C2H4 on pulp softening and related this to the disorder. In many fruits (tomato, avocado and mango, etc.) it is true that cell wall changes and the activities of PG and PME are related to softening. We consider that PG also plays some role during banana softening and that the chlorophyll remaining in the peel is related to the action of high temperature and some enzymes. | |
Download Adobe Acrobat Reader (free software to read PDF files) | |
