Integrated metabolomics and lipidomics for in-depth understanding of dynamic metabolic changes in passion fruit with...

The metabolic and lipidomic profiles of passion fruit at different ripeness stages were systematically investigated using integrated approaches. A total of 558 metabolites across 12 classes and 568 lipids spanning 6 classes were annotated, revealing distinct dynamic changes during both pre- and post-harvest ripening. KEGG pathway enrichment analysis indicated that pre-harvest ripening was associated with the upregulation of pathways such as linoleic acid metabolism, facilitating fatty acid accumulation for cell growth and energy metabolism. In contrast, post-harvest ripening predominantly enhanced the biosynthesis of plant secondary metabolites, notably functional compounds such as 4-Aminobutyric acid and L-(+)-Ergothioneine. Targeted quantification of these two key metabolites using UPLC-QQQ-MS validated the trends observed in untargeted metabolomics. These findings provide in-depth insights into the dynamic metabolic reprogramming during passion fruit ripening and highlight potential applications for functional compound extraction and the valorization of passion fruit by-products.