ABSTRACT
The study of the qualitative and quantitative variations of phenolic compounds showed that they possess two interesting characteristics: first, some of them are excellent indicators of the physiological stages of fruit development, and second, they are particularly sensitive to environment factors and especially to light and temperature. The problem of the possible role played by polyphenols in the physiology of plants is far from having been solved and, in spite of numerous works and reviews over the past 20 years, knowledge of the physiological functions of these compounds is still imprecise. This chapter examines the intervention of phenolic compounds in the growth of fruits, in maturation, and finally in various other physiological phenomena connected with the life of fruits. Characteristic changes in phenolic compounds and of the enzymes of their metabolism are associated with the ripening of fruits, and in particular, with the triggering of ripening.
