Effect of hypobaric with nitric oxide fumigation on flavor compound retention in postharvest 'Xiaobai' apricots

This study explored the effects of hypobaric treatment combined with nitric oxide fumigation (HYT-NO) on apricot postharvest quality and flavor metabolism. HYT-NO tended to show better storage quality than the control and individual treatments. To further investigate the observed quality difference, electronic nose, HS-SPME-GC-MS, and GC-O-MS were employed to characterize sensory attributes and volatile profiles of control and HYT-NO treated fruit. HYT-NO treatment partially suppress sensor responses associated with undesirable volatiles. Among the 918 VOCs identified, terpenoids and esters predominated. HYT-NO also mitigated late-stage losses of key volatiles (eg. Linalool, d-limonene), and enrichment of monoterpenoid biosynthesis metabolites suggested a possible link to aroma retention, meriting further validation. GC-O-MS analysis further suggested linalool, hexanal, and 2-hexenal as potential core flavor contributors. Collectively, these findings suggest that HYT-NO may help preserve desirable apricot flavor during storage, highlighting its potential as a postharvest preservation strategy.