Methyl jasmonate enhances wound-induced phenolic accumulation in pitaya fruit by regulating sugar content and energy status

Pitaya fruit pretreated with methyl jasmonate (MeJA) were subjected to wounding stress and effects on quality, energy metabolism and phenolic accumulation were investigated. Results showed that MeJA pretreatment effectively inhibited the wound-induced decrease of ascorbic acid, organic acids and prevented the deterioration of flesh color of fresh-cut pitaya fruit. Simultaneously, MeJA pretreatment effectively accelerated the consumption of sugars, stimulated higher enzyme activities in energy metabolism, triggered higher energy status and further enhanced the wound-induced phenolic accumulation in fresh-cut pitaya. These findings demonstrated that MeJA pretreatment could partially maintain most of the quality attributes of fresh-cut pitaya fruit. Moreover, MeJA together with wounding stress can synergistically induce the utilization and transformation of sugars to provide essential precursors and energy for the wound-induced phenolic accumulation in fresh-cut pitaya fruit.