Metabolomics reveals the effect of hypobaric treatment on energy metabolism in vibration-injured ‘Huangguan’ pears

Mechanical damage caused by vibration during transportation can destroy organization structure and reduce the fruit quality. The objective was to reveal the mechanism of hypobaric treatment on energy metabolism in vibration-injured 'Huangguan' pears based on metabolomics. Results showed that hypobaric treatment delayed the decline of adenosine triphosphate (ATP) content, energy charge (EC), H+-ATPase and Ca2+-ATPase activities comparing to untreated samples. Metabolomics data indicated there were 83 significant differential metabolites between untreated samples and hypobaric treated ones. KEGG analysis results showed significant differential metabolites were associated with 14 pathways. Key metabolites and pathways analysis revealed these up-regulated amino acids were related to amino acid metabolism, biosynthesis of secondary metabolites and membrane transport. These pathways were activated observably by hypobaric treatment. The results indicated hypobaric treatment slowed energy consumption in vibration-injured samples, which was in relation to the accumulation of amino acids. The findings provide a feasible preservation technology for vibration-injured fruit.