Effects of the combination treatment of 1-MCP and ethylene on the ripening of harvested banana fruit

•A 1-MCP + ethepon treatment was developed for banana storage.•The treatment delayed and decreased respiration rate and ethylene production.•The treatment inhibited enzyme activity for fruit softening and ethylene synthesis.•The treatment delayed volatile compound formation without negative effects.•The treatment significantly prolonged the shelf life of banana fruit.

1-methylcyclopropene (1-MCP) has obvious effects on delaying the ripening of harvested banana fruit. However, improper concentration, treatment time and handling methods could affect normal ripening, yellowing, softening and formation of volatiles, which are important components of banana fruit quality. This study was performed to screen and test the effect of a combination of low concentration ethephon with 1-MCP on the ripening of banana fruit, as well as on physiological and biochemical changes. The results showed that a combination of 50 μL L−1 ethephon with 400 nL L−1 1-MCP (16 h) was the most suitable treatment, which significantly delayed the ripening and maintained the commodity value of harvested banana fruit without detrimentally affecting normal ripening after ripening acceleration treatment. This treatment effectively delayed and decreased respiration rate and ethylene production, inhibited the activity of pectin lyase (PL), pectin methylesterase (PME), cellulase (CX) and polygalacturonase (PG), and delayed the peak activity of ACC synthase (ACS) and ACC oxidase (ACO). It also delayed the formation of volatile compounds, but did not detrimentally affect the amount of volatiles, especially the esters. The combined treatment significantly delayed the ripening and prolonged the shelf life of banana fruit with normal coloring and volatile development, which effectively maintained the commercial value of banana fruit.