Malate metabolism in horticultural crops: mechanistic insights and agricultural practices for quality improvement.

ABSTRACT: Malate metabolism bridges plant evolutionary adaptation and fruit quality regulation, serving dual roles in energy metabolism (tricarboxylic acid cycle/glycolysis) and environmental stress responses (stomatal control, pH balance). In horticulture, apple malate content dictates flavor profiles, driving divergent consumer preferences (high-sugar in Asia vs. tartness in the West), necessitating precision breeding targeting vacuolar accumulation mechanisms. Recent bioinformatic studies and transporter biology (e.g., Ma1, ALMT) have revealed genetic regulators of malate homeostasis, yet transcriptional regulation and post-translational modifications (PTMs) of transporters remain poorly understood. Notably, cultivated varieties exhibit distinct malate-related traits compared to their wild relati

SUBMITTER: Zhao TT 

PROVIDER: S-EPMC12548192 | biostudies-literature | 2025 Oct

REPOSITORIES: biostudies-literature