USE OF PEPTIDES AND METHODS FOR DETERMINING WHETHER A PLANT HAS BEEN SUBJECTED TO FROST

摘要

The present invention relates to the use of one or several peptides originating from four proteins from the pistils of peach blossom, the presence whereof is detected specifically subsequent to the plant having been subjected to frost. Said peptides belong to the glyceraldehyde-3-phosphate dehydrogenase proteins, alpha subunit of proteasome 20S, beta subunit of proteasome 20S (for the six peptides present following frost) and thioredoxin h (for a peptide absent following frost). The presence and/or absence thereof in the early days of development of the fruit permits the determination of whether said fruit has been subjected or not to frost and to discount other types of stress from the cause of damage such as, for example, water stress. Furthermore the present invention also relates to methods and kits for determining whether a plant has been subjected to frost.