title: Ascorbic acid metabolism during bilberry (Vaccinium myrtillus L.) fruit development.
abstract: Bilberry (Vaccinium myrtillus L.) possesses a high antioxidant capacity in berries due to the presence of anthocyanins and ascorbic acid (AsA). Accumulation of AsA and the expression of the genes encoding the enzymes of the main AsA biosynthetic route and of the ascorbate-glutathione cycle, as well as the activities of the enzymes involved in AsA oxidation and recycling were investigated for the first time during the development and ripening of bilberry fruit. The results showed that the AsA level remained relatively stable during fruit maturation. The expression of the genes encoding the key enzymes in the AsA main biosynthetic route showed consistent trends with each other as well as with AsA levels, especially during the first stages of fruit ripening. The expression of genes and activities of the enzyme involved in the AsA oxidation and recycling route showed more prominent developmental stage-dependent changes during the ripening process. Different patterns of activity were found among the studied enzymes and the results were, for some enzymes, in accordance with AsA levels. In fully ripe berries, both AsA content and gene expression were significantly higher in skin than in pulp.
authors.affiliation: Department of Biology, University of Oulu, PO Box 3000, FIN-90014 Oulu, Finland. giacomo.cocetta@unimi.it
authors.forename: Giacomo
authors.initials: G
authors.lastname: Cocetta
authors.forename: Katja
authors.initials: K
authors.lastname: Karppinen
authors.forename: Marko
authors.initials: M
authors.lastname: Suokas
authors.forename: Anja
authors.initials: A
authors.lastname: Hohtola
authors.forename: Hely
authors.initials: H
authors.lastname: Häggman
authors.forename: Anna
authors.initials: A
authors.lastname: Spinardi
authors.forename: Ilaria
authors.initials: I
authors.lastname: Mignani
authors.forename: Laura
authors.initials: L
authors.lastname: Jaakola
mesh_terms: D001205:Ascorbic Acid / Q000378:metabolism*; D005638:Fruit / Q000254:growth & development* / Q000378:metabolism*; D018506:Gene Expression Regulation, Plant; D029800:Vaccinium myrtillus / Q000254:growth & development* / Q000378:metabolism*
chemical_list: D001205:Ascorbic Acid