View article

Tomato ( Solanum lycopersicum ) fruit is susceptible to chilling injury (CI), a physiological disorder caused by low, non-freezing temperatures that affects fruit postharvest quality. Little is known about the biochemical basis of CI, and the aim of this study was to identify proteins related to this disorder in ‘Imperial’ tomato fruit. CI and protein expression changes were analyzed during fruit ripening (0, 4, 8, and 12 days at 21 °C) after storage under chilling (5 °C) and non-chilling conditions (21 °C) for 5, 15, and 25 days. The main CI symptoms observed were uneven fruit ripening and color development, pitting, and decay. Protein analysis of two-dimensional gels showed that 6% of the detected spots (≈300) changed their expression in response to cold. The identified proteins are involved in carbon metabolism, oxidative stress, photosynthesis, and protein processing and degradation; two were related …