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Heat stress affects carbohydrate metabolism during cold-induced sweetening of potato (Solanum tuberosum L.)

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Abstract

Main conclusion

Tolerance to heat stress for retention of low-temperature sweetening-resistant phenotype in potato is conferred by insensitivity of acid invertase activity to cold induction.

Heat stress exacerbated cold sweetening (buildup of reducing sugars) of the LTS (low-temperature sweetening)-susceptible potato (Solanum tuberosum L.) cultivars, Ranger Russet and Russet Burbank, and completely abolished the resistance to cold sweetening in the LTS-resistant cultivars/clones, Sage Russet, GemStar Russet, POR06V12-3 and A02138-2. Payette Russet and EGA09702-2, however, demonstrated considerable tolerance to heat stress for retention of their LTS-resistant phenotype. Heat-primed Payette Russet and EGA09702-2 tubers accumulated fourfold more sucrose when subsequently stored at 4 °C, while reducing sugar concentrations also increased marginally but remained low relative to the non-heat-tolerant LTS-resistant clones, resulting in light-colored fries. By contrast, sucrose concentrations in heat-primed tubers of the non-heat-tolerant clones remained unchanged during LTS, but reducing sugars increased fivefold, resulting in darkening of processed fries. Acid invertase activity increased in the LTS-susceptible and non-heat-tolerant LTS-resistant cultivars/clones during cold storage. However, Payette Russet tubers maintained very low invertase activity regardless of heat stress and cold storage treatments, as was the case for Innate® Russet Burbank (W8) tubers, where silenced invertase conferred robust tolerance to heat stress for retention of LTS-resistant phenotype. Importantly, heat-stressed tubers of Payette Russet, EGA09702-2 and Innate® Russet Burbank (W8) demonstrated similar low reducing sugar and high sucrose-accumulating phenotypes when stored at 4 °C. Tolerance to heat stress for retention of LTS-resistant phenotype in Payette Russet and likely its maternal parent, EGA09702-2, is, therefore, conferred by the ability to maintain low invertase activity during cold storage of heat-stressed tubers.

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Abbreviations

ANOVA:

Analysis of variance

CS:

Cold stress

DAH:

Days after harvest

DAP:

Days after planting

Fru:

Fructose

Glc:

Glucose

HS:

Heat stress

Inh1:

Apoplastic invertase inhibitor 1

Inh2:

Vacuolar invertase inhibitor 2 β

LTS:

Low-temperature sweetening

Mkt:

Marketable yield (total yield minus culls)

PHHS:

Postharvest heat stress

WH:

Wound healing

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Acknowledgements

We gratefully acknowledge financial support from the USDA-ARS, Northwest Potato Research Consortium and the Washington State Potato Commission. We thank the J.R. Simplot Company, Boise, ID for providing Innate® Russet Burbank (W8) seed potatoes and Dr. Richard G. Novy (USDA-ARS, Aberdeen, ID) for providing tubers of EGA09702-2.

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  1. Postharvest Physiology and Biochemistry Laboratory, Department of Horticulture, Washington State University, P.O. Box 646414, Pullman, WA, 99164-6414, USA

    Derek J. Herman, Lisa O. Knowles & N. Richard Knowles

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Correspondence to N. Richard Knowles.

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Herman, D.J., Knowles, L.O. & Knowles, N.R. Heat stress affects carbohydrate metabolism during cold-induced sweetening of potato (Solanum tuberosum L.). Planta 245, 563–582 (2017). https://doi.org/10.1007/s00425-016-2626-z

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