Abstract
In the Mediterranean region, the persimmon cultivar ‘Rojo Brillante’ may experience up to four waves of fruit drop. The first is a physiological event during fruit set that is common in woody species, while the subsequent waves are induced by rising temperatures and prolonged summer water stress. These summer drops represent the main limiting factor, leading to yield losses of up to 90%. Organ abscission is a complex process regulated by genetic, hormonal, nutritional, and environmental factors. We hypothesise that calcium (Ca) plays a protective role in the abscission zone (AZ) by inhibiting cell wall-degrading enzymes such as polygalacturonase (PG) and pectin methylesterases (PMEs). Calcium applications every 15 days from anthesis onwards significantly reduced fruit drop. Treatments preserved polar auxin transport—through DkPIN1 expression—and inhibited stage C of the abscission process, decreasing the relative expression of the DkIDL6 gene in the AZ. Moreover, PME and PG activities were significantly lower in Ca-treated fruits, confirming the stabilising effect of calcium on AZ integrity. In summary, pre-anthesis calcium sprays reduced premature fruit drop by about 30% under heat–drought stress by down-regulating key abscission genes (DkIDL6, DkPG20, DkPME41) and preserving cell wall integrity and fruit firmness, supporting the use of Ca treatments as a climate-smart approach to stabilise persimmon yield.
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Claims 10
Claim · model-written summary
Calcium applications every 15 days from anthesis significantly reduced persimmon fruit drop.
- Organ / stage
- anthesise0
- Treatment
- Calcium applications every 15 days from anthesis onwardse0
- Outcome
- fruit drope0
- Direction
- reducede0
DiospyrosNot reportedComparator
Organisms pictured · Representative pictures of the matched species, not figures from the paper.
Verbatim
e0“Calcium applications every 15 days from anthesis onwards significantly reduced fruit drop.”
t0“Persimmon”
Claim · model-written summary
Calcium treatments preserved polar auxin transport through DkPIN1 expression.
Not reportedComparator
Organisms pictured · Representative pictures of the matched species, not figures from the paper.
Verbatim
e0“Treatments preserved polar auxin transport—through DkPIN1 expression”
t0“Persimmon”
Claim · model-written summary
Calcium treatments inhibited stage C of persimmon abscission.
Not reportedComparator
Organisms pictured · Representative pictures of the matched species, not figures from the paper.
Verbatim
e0“inhibited stage C of the abscission process”
t0“Persimmon”
e1“Calcium applications every 15 days”
Claim · model-written summary
Calcium treatments decreased relative DkIDL6 expression in the abscission zone.
- Organ / stage
- AZe0
- Treatment
- Calcium applicationse1
- Gene
- DkIDL6e0
- Outcome
- relative expressione0
- Direction
- decreasinge0
Not reportedComparator
Organisms pictured · Representative pictures of the matched species, not figures from the paper.
Verbatim
e0“decreasing the relative expression of the DkIDL6 gene in the AZ”
e1“Calcium applications every 15 days”
t0“Persimmon”
Claim · model-written summary
PME activity was significantly lower in calcium treated persimmon fruit.
Not reportedComparator
Organisms pictured · Representative pictures of the matched species, not figures from the paper.
Verbatim
e0“PME and PG activities were significantly lower in Ca-treated fruits”
t0“Persimmon”
Claim · model-written summary
PG activity was significantly lower in calcium treated persimmon fruit.
Not reportedComparator
Organisms pictured · Representative pictures of the matched species, not figures from the paper.
Verbatim
e0“PME and PG activities were significantly lower in Ca-treated fruits”
t0“Persimmon”
Claim · model-written summary
Pre-anthesis calcium sprays reduced premature persimmon fruit drop by about 30% under heat and drought stress.
- Treatment
- pre-anthesis calcium sprayse0
- Outcome
- premature fruit drope0
- Direction
- reducede0
- Value
- about 30%e0
- Qualifier
- under heat–drought stresse0
Not reportedComparator
Organisms pictured · Representative pictures of the matched species, not figures from the paper.
Verbatim
e0“pre-anthesis calcium sprays reduced premature fruit drop by about 30% under heat–drought stress”
t0“Persimmon”
Claim · model-written summary
Calcium sprays down-regulated DkIDL6, DkPG20 and DkPME41.
- Treatment
- pre-anthesis calcium sprayse1
- Gene
- DkIDL6, DkPG20, DkPME41e0
- Outcome
- key abscission genese0
- Direction
- down-regulatinge0
Not reportedComparator
Organisms pictured · Representative pictures of the matched species, not figures from the paper.
Verbatim
e0“down-regulating key abscission genes (DkIDL6, DkPG20, DkPME41)”
e1“pre-anthesis calcium sprays”
t0“Persimmon”
Claim · model-written summary
Calcium sprays preserved cell wall integrity and fruit firmness.
- Treatment
- pre-anthesis calcium sprayse1
- Outcome
- cell wall integrity and fruit firmnesse0
- Direction
- preservinge0
Not reportedComparator
Organisms pictured · Representative pictures of the matched species, not figures from the paper.
Verbatim
e0“preserving cell wall integrity and fruit firmness”
e1“pre-anthesis calcium sprays”
t0“Persimmon”
Claim · model-written summary
The authors support calcium treatments to stabilise persimmon yield.
- Outcome
- use of Ca treatments as a climate-smart approach to stabilise persimmon yielde0
Organisms pictured · Representative pictures of the matched species, not figures from the paper.
Verbatim
e0“supporting the use of Ca treatments as a climate-smart approach to stabilise persimmon yield”
The same questions in other papers
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application · yield · DiospyrosResults agree
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- positive
- positive
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See all 5 papers →Claims are grouped by organism, treatment and what was measured or targeted. A paper counts as positive when any of its claims in the group is positive.