Xenia Effect on Nutritional and Flavor Components of 'Jingbaili' Pear

The 'Jingbaili' pear is a national geographical indication product of China, featuring an oblate shape and being rich in nutrients. But the quality of the 'Jingbaili' pear is unstable. Xenia can cause changes in the quality of pears, but the effect of xenia on the 'Jingbaili' pear is unknown, and its mechanism is still unclear. In order to clarify the effect of pollination on the fruit quality of the 'Jingbaili' pear, this research pollinated 'Jingbaili' pear flowers with the pollen of 'Yali' (JY), 'Suli' (JS) and 'Huangli' (JH). The results indicated that the mass, transverse diameter and longitudinal diameter of the JY group were significantly higher than the JS group and JH group. On the other hand, the pears of the JY group and JS group obtained higher soluble sugar content. The aroma content of characteristic compounds was higher in the JY group than in the JS group and JH group. Multivariate analysis revealed significant differences in the nonvolatile metabolites among the JY group, JS group and JH group, potentially explaining the variations in the nutritional and flavor compounds of the pears. Furthermore, this research investigated metabolic changes in the pears during development and ripening under the three types of pollination. The results showed that amino acid metabolism differed among these pollination types during development. These differences may be the cause of the observed variations in the pears. This research clarified the effect of xenia on the nutritional components and flavor substances in the 'Jingbaili' pear and could provide data support for improving the quality of the 'Jingbaili' pear.