BIOCHEMICAL DIFFERENCES IN CELL-WALL OF CHERRY FRUIT BETWEEN SOFT ANDCRISP FRUIT

The cell wall differences between crisp and soft cherry fruits are rep orted. The penetrometric measurements are correlated with the physiolo gical stage of fruits but not with the sensory analysis at maturity. T he major difference lies in the degree of polymerization of pectin sid e chains. A high degree of polymerization produces a rigid cell wall w ith numerous bonds between the polymers of crisp fruits: the cells pre sent regular forms. On the contrary, the soft fruits possess fewer int eractions between polymers, and consequently, the cells present irregu lar forms.