| Summary: | Tea: storage temperature impacts vitamin C metabolism High and low temperatures induce the expression of enzymes involved in vitamin C metabolism in tea leaves. A research team from Nanjing Agricultural University, China, led by Jing Zhuang collected fresh leaves from 1-year-old tea plants of the Longjing #43 varietal and then stored the leaves for 4 h at 4 °C (cold), 38 °C (hot), or 25 °C (room temperature). They found that absolute levels of vitamin C—an antioxidant molecule also known as ascorbic acid—were highest after storage at the low temperature and lowest after storage at the high temperature. However, the expression levels of genes involved in vitamin C synthesis and breakdown were elevated at both high and low temperatures. The findings could aid the tea industry in developing storage and transportation strategies that optimize leaf quality and flavor.
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