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Increased Temperatures Promote Fruit Enlargement Through Cellular and Transcriptomic Changes in Raspberries (Rubus
Jesús Hernández-Urrieta1, Sebastián García2, Lamia Estait1
1Facultad de Ciencias Biológicas, Pontificia Universidad Católica de Chile, Avenida Libertador Bernardo O'Higgins 340, Santiago 8331150, Chile.
Plants (Basel, Switzerland)
|July 15, 2026
Summary
Moderate warming increases raspberry fruit size by altering cell structure. Molecular responses varied by location, but oxylipin pathways showed conserved heat responses in these Rubus idaeus fruits.
Area of Science:
- Plant Science
- Agricultural Science
- Molecular Biology
Background:
- Rising global temperatures due to climate change pose risks to fruit development and quality.
- The molecular mechanisms of raspberry fruit response to moderate warming in field conditions remain largely unexplored.
Purpose of the Study:
- To investigate the physiological and transcriptomic responses of raspberry (Rubus idaeus cv. Heritage) fruits to moderate warming.
- To understand how agroclimatic context influences these responses.
Main Methods:
- Raspberry plants were subjected to moderate temperature increases during fruit development in two Chilean agroclimatic regions.
- Fruit phenotyping, histological analysis, and RNA sequencing were employed to assess responses.
- Gene expression data were analyzed to identify heat-responsive pathways.
Main Results:
- Elevated temperatures led to increased fruit weight and dimensions, characterized by larger drupelet and cell areas and reduced cell density.
- Transcriptomic analysis revealed significant differences in gene expression between locations, with few shared heat-responsive genes.
- Oxylipin-related processes were commonly enriched, indicating a conserved molecular response to heat stress.
Conclusions:
- Moderate warming promotes larger raspberry fruits via altered cellular organization, with effects modulated by agroclimatic factors.
- The study highlights context-dependent molecular responses to heat in fruit development, with conserved oxylipin pathway involvement.
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