Abstract

Persimmons ripen rapidly after harvest and are highly susceptible to quality deterioration. Pulsed light (PL), a novel non-thermal physical preservation technology, was applied in this study to investigate the underlying mechanisms of its effects on quality of ‘Mopan ’ persimmons during storage. Fruit were treated with PL at an intensity of 4 J/cm². PL treatment delayed softening, maintained higher L * values and soluble solids content, and enhanced the accumulation of several classes of bioactive metabolites. These metabolites mainly included terpenoids, polyphenols, flavonoids, and amino acids, indicating an overall improvement in nutritional quality and antioxidant-related attributes. PL suppressed the expression of genes involved in ethylene biosynthesis ( DkMTN , DkACO1 , DkSAMS ) and ethylene signal transduction ( DkETR2 , DkEIN3 ), as well as genes encoding cell wall-degrading enzymes ( DkPG , DkPME45 , DkEG ). In addition, PL upregulated the expression of carotenoid biosynthesis-related genes ( DkPSY , DkPDS ) and upregulated genes associated with the phenylpropanoid pathway ( DkCCR , DkACT , DkC4H , Dk4CL ) and antioxidant defense systems ( DkSOD , DkAPX ). Collectively, these results demonstrate that PL treatment enhances postharvest antioxidant capacity and delays fruit softening and color changes in persimmons by coordinately regulating ethylene biosynthesis and signaling, cell wall degradation, carotenoid metabolism, and resistance-related metabolic pathways. This study highlights the potential of PL as a green and effective postharvest preservation strategy for persimmons.