The nanostructure of hemicellulose of crisp and soft Chinese cherry (Prunus pseudocerasus L.) cultivars at different stages of ripeness

Atomic force microscopy (AFM) was used to describe and measure the nanostructure of hemicellulose (HC) samples extracted from two cultivars of Chinese cherry, ‘Caode’ (soft) and ‘Bende’ (crisp) at different stages of ripeness. The widths of the HC molecules and aggregates are consistent with little difference between the two cultivars: 23, 29, 34 and 41 nm for ripe soft fruit and 23, 34, 39 and 41 nm for ripe crisp fruit. The results showed that crisp fruit contained a higher percentage of thicker HC chains than soft fruit, suggesting that the thickness of the HC chains may be related to the textural differences observed in the cultivars of the Chinese cherries.