PHYSIOLOGICAL AND BIOCHEMICAL STUDIES OF CHILLING INJURY IN BANANAS

The physiological changes in green bananas (cv. Sin‐zun), which are very sensitive to chilling injury, were studied during and after exposure to low temperatures (4±1°C, 6±0.5°C) for various periods. While the fruits injured by chilling did not fail to produce CO2 and ethylene, the pattern of both CO2‐ and ethylene production in these chilled fruits (9 and 15 days at 6°C) after transfer to 20°C was not normal. The contents of acetaldehyde and ethanol in chilled fruits, both in peels and pulps, increased with the advance of chilling, injury. There was an accumulation of α‐keto acids in the peels of chilled fruits. Only half the conversion of 14C (fed as succinic acid‐1, 4‐14C) to citric acid and isocitric acid was observed in chilled tissues as compared with healthy ones; the activity of citrate synthase in banana peels appears therefore to be inhibited by chilling injury. A histological study of the tissues showed that the browning substances (polyphenols) present in chilled fruits accumulate around the vascular tissues. Copyright © 1969, Wiley Blackwell. All rights reserved