Effect of heat treatment on lignification of postharvest bamboo shoots (Phyllostachys praecox f. prevernalis.)

In order to evaluate the effects of heat treatment on the quality of postharvest bamboo shoots, the firmness, disease incidence, respiration and ethylene production, ACC synthase (ACS) and ACC oxidase (ACO) activities, lignin and cellulose contents, and the activities of phenylalanine ammonia-lyase (PAL), cinnamyl alcohol dehydrogenase (CAD) and peroxidase (POD) were examined during storage at 20 °C after heat treatment at 45 °C for 5 h. Heat treatment inhibited disease incidence and respiration, retarded ethylene production, and decreased ACS and ACO activities in bamboo shoots. Furthermore, heat treatment significantly delayed the rise in the activities of PAL, CAD and POD, which were associated with the inhibition of the synthesis of lignin and the delayed tissue lignification. These findings suggest that heat treatment could be a potential tool to delay lignification and decrease disease incidence in bamboo shoots during storage at 20 °C.