Altered physiology and biochemistry of imported litchi fruit held under different vapor pressure deficits

The effects of vapor pressure deficit (VPD) on litchi fruit quality have not yet been fully defined. The aim of this study was to detail the changes in physiology, sugars, organic acids, and individual anthocyanin concentrations in imported litchi fruit held at various controlled relative humidity (RH) and VPD levels. SO(2)-fumigated (but not acid-treated) litchi imported from Thailand (cv. Kom) and from Israel (cv. Mauritius) were air freighted to the United Kingdom and then stored for 9 days at either 5 or 13 degrees C to simulate shelf-life conditions. Fruits were stored under a series of controlled RH conditions for the duration of the trial using different concentrations of glycerol in deonized water. Respiration rates and weight losses of both fruit lots were greater in litchi stored at 13 degrees C and a VPD of 0.274 kPa. At 5 degrees C and a VPD of 0 or 0.042 kPa, sugars and organic acids in aril and pericarp tissue and individual anthocyanins in pericarp were better maintained. This is the first piece of work that has systematically evaluated the effect of a series of VPDs on litchi fruit biochemistry such that implications for designing systems to better maintain the physiological quality of imported litchi fruit are discussed.