Could studies on cell responses to low oxygen levels provide improved options for fruit storage and disinfestation?

Cellular responses of harvested horticultural products to reduced partial pressure of oxygen in controlled atmospheres (CA) or modified atmospheres (MA) storage include reduced energy charge, reduced energy availability for repair and maintenance, cytoplasmic acidification, and activation of glycolysis and toxic glycolytic end products. These responses are compared with those of root cells to flooding and of vertebrate and invertebrate animal cells to oxygen deficit. The capacity to sense incipient oxygen stress and, when time, temperature and stress level permit, adapt and so avoid cell damage, is emphasised. The applications of CA and MA technologies could be extended if adaptive changes in the plant products were fostered during the early stages of storage. The use of a combination of heat and oxygen deficit for disinfestation is another possibility. A need for more fundamental studies of energy metabolism in horticultural products in CA is recognised.