The effect of mechanical harvesting and long-distance transport on the concentration of haze-forming proteins in grape juice

The concentration and composition of soluble, haze-forming protein in juice of hand-harvested (HH) and mechanically harvested (MH) Pinot Noir and Sauvignon Blanc grapes was determined. The major soluble proteins in both varieties were pathogenesis-related (PR) proteins, specifically thaumatin-like proteins and chitinases. Comparison among HH berries, MH intact berries and the mixture of broken fruit and juice, the predominant form of MH fruit, indicated that little if any protein was produced as a result of stress caused by MH. Nevertheless, MH coupled with long-distance transport which caused a delay in pressing the mechanically damaged fruit, resulted in juice with a higher concentration of PR proteins compared to juice obtained from pressing HH fruit. Soluble PR proteins were detected in the berry skin of both varieties. Increases in protein content of juice from MH fruit are predominantly caused by extraction of protein from skins and solids of broken grapes during transport to the winery.     

葡萄属(Vitis)种间杂交一代(F_1)果实抗白粉病的遗传

通过对７个欧洲葡萄品种与４个中国葡萄野生种组成的１１个杂交组合的果实抗白粉病田间自然发病调查，结果表明，后代群体的抗病性呈连续性分布，表现出多基因遗传的特征。在供试的中国葡萄资源中，华东葡萄、毛葡萄和秋葡萄具有将其抗性遗传给后代（Ｆ１）的较强能力。     

Integration of strobilurins and other fungicides for the control of powdery mildew on grapes

The strobilurin fungicides Amistar (azoxystrobin) and Flint (trifloxystrobin) were evaluated in 1999/00 and 2000/01 in programs that included various combinations with Thiovit (sulfur) and Topas (penconazole) for the control of powdery mildew on grapes. In most experiments the application of 6 sprays per season that included Thiovit (3 g/L) followed by various combinations of Topas (0.125 mL/L), Amistar (0.5 g/L), Flint (0.15 g/L) and Thiovit (2 g/L) controlled powdery mildew. Although strobilurins were applied from flowering to after fruit set, the order in which various fungicides were applied had little influence on the level of powdery mildew control. In experiments where the bunch or leaf area diseased was 60% or higher in unsprayed plots, the severity was less than 5% where combinations of Thiovit and Topas with either Amistar or Flint were applied. In one experiment, 3 applications of either Legend (quinoxyfen) or Prosper (spiroxamine) following 2 applications of Thiovit also provided excellent control of powdery mildew. In programs where the application of Amistar and Flint were directly compared, Flint was the most effective fungicide for controlling powdery mildew. In the experiments where downy mildew also developed, Amistar was more effective than Flint in controlling this disease.     

Conjugated polyamines and hydroxycinnamic acids in grape berries during Botrytis cinerea disease development: differences between 'noble rot' and 'grey mould'

Data are provided on contrasting levels of different categories of polyamines and hydroxycinnamic acids during the course of disease development due to Botrytis cinerea on ripe grape berries that led to either noble rot or to grey mould. Noble rot development was mainly characterised by a greater accumulation of wall-bound polyamines at the beginning of infection, whereas the disease process that led to grey mould was marked by an increase of conjugated polyamines. During grey mould infection, coumaric acid was the predominant hydroxycinnamic acid present in both healthy and infected grape berries regardless of infection stage, whereas ferulic acid was present at lower concentrations than the other hydroxycinnamic acids identified. Moreover, changes in the relative proportions of each of the three hydroxycinnamic acids considered showed contrasting patterns according to the sort of rot which developed. The different roles of these compounds (hydroxycinnamic acids and polyamines) and their involvement in the interaction between Botrytis cinerea and grapevines is discussed. During development of grey mould, coumaric acid was the predominant hydroxycinnamic acid at the beginning and the end of infection, whereas caffeic acid predominated during mid stage.     

Control strategies against grey mould (Botrytis cinerea Pers.: Fr) and corresponding fungicide residues in grapes and wines

This study examines the most effective anti-Botrytis strategies leading to possible lower pesticides residues in wine. To provide wine growers with a number of high-quality solutions for protection against Botrytis for their vineyards while minimizing pesticide residues in the final product, various treatment approaches were tested. A total of 10 strategies with different specific fungicide treatments for controlling Botrytis cinerea were applied to grapes at different growing stages: flowering, bunch closure and colour change. The type of vine chosen was Gamay, as it is very sensitive to Botrytis cinerea. In each experimental plot, disease incidence and severity were assessed at harvest. In addition, pesticide residue analysis was carried out on grapes, musts and wines to monitor residue levels in each treatment and to follow changes at each stage of the wine-making process. A correlation was established between the efficiency of anti-Botrytis fungicide treatment and pesticide residues in wine. Several strategies using various fungicides showed good results in terms of treatment efficiency while minimizing pesticide residues in wine, thus providing interesting alternatives to limit the development of fungal resistance.     

Maturation of cleistothecia of Uncinula necator (powdery mildew) and release of ascospores in southern Australia

We paired genetically characterised isolates of U. necator under controlled conditions and raised the resultant cleistothecia to maturity. Progeny were recovered from cleistothecia formed in the glasshouse and growth room 97–110 days after cleistothecial initials were observed.
Cleistothecia collected from naturally infected leaves from vineyards in the Adelaide Plains and Langhorne Creek, South Australia, in March and April (autumn) 1998 and stored in the same vineyards, were induced to release ascospores in the laboratory between March 1998 and February 1999. This paper is the first report of cleistothecia of U. necator releasing ascospores during summer, autumn and winter in southern Australia. Cleistothecia did not require a period of over-wintering in order to release ascospores that infected detached grapevine leaves in vitro . Furthermore, cleistothecia that over-wintered in the field were triggered to release ascospores in the laboratory in spring. Release of ascospores in spring was coincident with observations of ascospore-derived infections in the Waite Campus vineyard, confirming that cleistothecia provide an additional source of primary inoculum for powdery mildew in South Australia. Autumn release of ascospores suggests the possibility that U. necator may complete two sexual generations per year in Mediterranean climates, with consequent increased risks of development of fungicide resistance and changes in pathogenicity.     

Ripe rot of south‐eastern Australian wine grapes is caused by two species of Colletotrichum: C. acutatum and C. gloeosporioides with differences in infection and fungicide sensitivity

Background and Aims: Ripe rot of grapes is widespread in subtropical vineyards of south‐eastern Australia. We aimed to re‐evaluate the causative agent(s), berry susceptibility, fungicide sensitivity and differences in histopathology. Methods and Results: Both Colletotrichum acutatum and C. gloeosporioides were shown to be responsible for ripe rot in three vineyards surveyed in the Hastings Valley, NSW in 2007 and 2009. Observation on detached berries of Vitis vinifera (cv. Cabernet Sauvignon and Chardonnay) revealed that C. acutatum had a faster infection rate than C. gloeosporioides. C. acutatum also formed appressoria and penetrated grape tissue faster than C. gloeosporioides, which produced longer hyphae on the berry surface before penetration. Both C. acutatum and C. gloeosporioides produced acervuli 48 h after inoculation. In contrast, spore germination rates and growth rates on potato dextrose agar were greater for C. gloeosporioides. The two species differed in their sensitivity to the fungicides benomyl, captan and triadimenol. C. acutatum was significantly more sensitive to captan and triadimenol, whereas C. gloeosporioides was more sensitive to benomyl. Conclusions: Both C. acutatum and C. gloeosporioides cause ripe rot of wine grapes in Australia. Subtle differences in the infection process may explain the relative prevalence of the two species. Significance of the Study: This study confirms the involvement of C. acutatum and C. gloeosporioides in ripe rot of grapes in Australia. Knowledge of growth characteristics and fungicide sensitivity of ripe rot pathogens should aid disease management strategies.     

Assessment of grey mould (Botrytis cinerea) impact on phenolic and sensory quality of Bordeaux grapes,musts and wines for two consecutive vintages

Background and Aims: The impact of grey mould (Botrytis cinerea (B. cinerea)) was quantified on chemical, phenolic and sensory qualities of grapes, derived musts and wines. Methods and Results: Analyses were carried out by using naturally or artificially infected grape berries at ripeness or overripeness. In grape seeds, chemical analyses revealed no major differences between healthy and rotten grapes. In grape skins of Botrytis‐affected berries, concentrations of all the phenolic compounds (anthocyanins and proanthocyanidin monomers, dimers and trimer) decreased drastically. Mean degree of polymerization of the proanthocyanidin polymeric fraction was also affected in skins. Chemical analyses of musts and wines made with different percentages of rotten berries showed a moderate impact of the pathogen on their phenolic composition. Nevertheless, sensory analyses underlined a loss of wine sensory quality perceptible from a threshold as low as 5% of Botrytis‐affected grapes onwards. Conclusion: Phenolic variations and the associated negative impact in grapes, derived musts and wines may be related to oxidation phenomena from B. cinerea. The main effects of severity/age of grey mould and the level of berry maturity are also discussed. Significance of the Study: B. cinerea drastically affects the phenolic and organoleptic properties of grape skins and derived wines. Therefore, prophylactic actions early in the vineyard, evaluation of the sanitary status of the harvested grapes and berry sorting are primordial even under low disease pressure.     

The effect of mechanical harvesting and transport of grapes, and juice oxidation, on the protein stability of wines

The concentration of haze-forming protein was determined in wines made from Sauvignon Blanc grapes harvested by hand or machine and transported for up to 400 km. The effect of oxidation of juice from mechanically harvested fruit on the concentration of haze-forming proteins was also investigated. Wines made from mechanically harvested, long-distance transported fruit contained more heat-unstable protein, and required fining with twice as much bentonite to ensure heat stability as wines made from hand-picked fruit. Juice oxidation had little effect on protein content of the juice or of the wine made from it.     

The aroma of Muscat of Frontignan grapes: effect of the light environment of vine or bunch on volatiles and glycoconjugates

Effects of the modification of whole vine or individual cluster light environment by shade cloth from berry set to maturity were studied on the volatiles and glycoconjugates in Muscat (Muscat of Frontignan; Vitis vinifera L) berries over 2 years. Whole vines were shaded with 50 and 70% shade cloth, while bunches were shaded with 90% shade cloth. The sun‐exposed berries were chosen as control berries, and the berries naturally shaded under foliage were also studied. The natural shading of bunches under foliage did not decrease the levels of free and bound compounds in Muscat berries compared to sun‐exposed berries. The artificially shaded bunches showed lower levels of monoterpenols and C13 norisoprenoids than sun‐exposed berries and berries from naturally shaded bunches. Moreover, the effect of vine shading on the aroma composition of Muscat berries was lower compared to artificial bunch shading. In 1996 the leaf area/fruit yield ratio was modified by decreasing the bunch number per vine. This change did not influence the total amounts of glycosidically bound compounds, except for monoterpenic glycoconjugates. However, the higher monoterpenic glycoconjugate levels in these berries were likely related to their early maturity. Under our experimental conditions, berry aroma composition did not appear to be affected by foliage shade. © 2000 Society of Chemical Industry     

The effect of bunch shading on berry development and flavonoid accumulation in Shiraz grapes

Opaque boxes were applied to bunches of Shiraz grapes prior to flowering to determine the effect of sunlight on berry development and accumulation of flavonoids. The boxes were designed to maintain airflow while excluding light and thus to minimise changes in temperature and humidity. There was no significant effect of shading on sugar accumulation and in two of the three seasons studied there was no effect on berry weight. Chlorophyll concentration was much lower in the shaded fruit, which appeared pale yellow until veraison. The fruit coloured normally in the shaded bunches and in two of the three seasons there was no significant change in anthocyanin content. Expression of the gene encoding UDP-glucose flavonoid-3-O-glucosyl transferase (UFGT), a key gene in anthocyanin synthesis, increased after veraison and was similar in both shaded and exposed fruit. Anthocyanin composition was altered in the shaded fruit, which had a greater proportion of the dioxygenated anthocyanins, the glucosides of cyanidin and peonidin. Shading had no significant effect on the levels of condensed tannins in the skin or seeds of ripe fruit. Shading significantly reduced the levels of flavonols in the grape skin. In the exposed fruit, flavonol concentration was highest around flowering then declined as the berries grew, but there was an increase in flavonols per berry during ripening. When the boxes were applied before flowering, shaded fruit had much lower levels of flavonols throughout berry development and at harvest the level of flavonols were less than 10% of that in exposed fruit. A gene encoding flavonol synthase (FLS) was expressed at flowering and during ripening in exposed grapes but its expression was greatly reduced in shaded fruit. The results indicate that shading had little effect on berry development and ripening, including accumulation of anthocyanins and tannins, but significantly decreased flavonol synthesis.     

The effects of topical treatments with 6-pentyl-2-pyrone and structural analogues on stem end postharvest rots in kiwifruit due to Botrytis cinerea

The picking wounds in kiwifruit formed by breaking off the pedicels at harvest were treated topically with the naturally occurring lactones 6-pentyl-2-pyrone (6PP), decano-δ-lactone (DL) and 2-deceno-δ-lactone (massoialacetone: ML), and with the synthetic fungicide vinclozolin. 6PP was applied at rates from 0·4 to 4 mg, neat or diluted in oil, water or acetone. 6PP treatments consistently reduced the incidence of Botrytis cinerea storage rots to low levels in both inoculated and naturally infected fruit. For inoculated fruit, control was achieved even when treatment was delayed up to 2 days from inoculation. ML gave significant but lesser control than 6PP, while DL was not generally effective. DL was also less effective than ML or 6PP at suppressing B cinerea inoculum germination in vitro. Much lower rates of vinclozolin (8 or 70 μg) also gave significant control of storage rots. Such topical treatment methods permit control of storage diseases with similar application quantities to currently accepted preharvest fungicide treatments. © 1998 SCI.     

The effect of post-veraison water deficit on yield components and maturation of irrigated Shiraz (Vitis vinifera L.) in the current and following season

Given their perennial nature, grapevines can respond to deficit irrigation during both the current season as well as during the following season, even though full irrigation may have been restored during that second season. To define the cropping responses involved, three post-veraison irrigation treatments were imposed on spur, mechanically and minimally pruned Shiraz vines that were already receiving restricted water application using Partial Rootzone Drying (PRD). The treatments resulted in the vines receiving 1.25 ML per hectare pre veraison and the three irrigation treatments receiving 1.25, 0.65 and 0 ML of water per hectare in the post-veraison period. Water deficit during the current season reduced berry and bunch weight, and yield. Sugar concentration was reduced, and phenolic concentration increased when less water was applied, but anthocyanin concentration was unaffected. Although irrigation was returned to standard practice (PRD) in the following season, yield was reduced in accordance with deficit irrigation treatments the previous season. This reduction in yield was primarily caused by fewer bunches per vine, which in turn was a direct consequence of fewer shoots per vine (lower budburst). The lower crop load on the vines that had received restricted irrigation post-veraison in the previous season resulted in higher sugar and antho-cyanin concentrations in fruit the following season. Lighter pruning resulted in a greater number of smaller bunches comprising smaller berries. In both seasons the minimal pruning treatment delayed fruit maturity as measured by sugar accumulation. Post-veraison water deficit thus has the potential to impact on both yield and fruit composition during the current season as well as during the subsequent season.     

The effect of cooking on proteins from acha (Digitaria exilis) and durum wheat

The effect of cooking on proteins from acha and durum wheat was assessed from an analysis of protein extractability, gel electrophoretic profiles, in-vitro protein digestibility (IVPD) and the amino acid compositions of wholemeal flour and residue proteins. Heating wholemeal flour samples at 100–140°C (t = 10–40 min) resulted in 0–30% and 45–55% decreases in acha and durum protein solubility, respectively. In general, high molecular weight (30–70 k Da) protein subunits were more susceptible to heat damage. For both cereals, sodium dodecyl sulphate (SDS; 10 g litre^?1) and/or dithiothrcitol (DTT; 10 mM ) increased protein solubility in unheated and heated samples. The IVPD index was 90–91% and was not significantly altered by cooking (100–120°C, t = 40 min). Cooking at extreme temperatures (140°C, t = 40 min) reduced the IVPD by 8% (P = 0.05). Osborne fractionation resulted in a durum or acha residue level of 7.8% or 55.2%. Treatment with solvent containing propanol, SDS and/or DTT at room temperature followed by SDS-polyacrylamide gel electrophoresis of non-solubilised proteins showed that the glutelin fraction of acha, with the exception of a 65 kDa subunit, was insoluble owing to strong inter-subunit hydrophobic and disulphide interactions. Wholemeal acha flour and residue protein showed a significantly greater level of hydrophobic and sulphur amino acids as well as glutamine which is associated with H-bonding. The possibility that cereal protein solubility is also dependent on protein-carbohydrate links is discussed.