Microbiome and metabolome dynamics during postharvest spoilage of persimmon fruit: links between fungal succession and metabolic deterioration

Persimmon fruit is highly susceptible to postharvest spoilage, yet the coupling between microbial succession and metabolic changes remains unclear. This study integrated phenotypic observation, physicochemical analysis, bacterial (274 OTUs) and fungal amplicon sequencing, and untargeted metabolomics (1,816 annotated metabolites) to investigate persimmon spoilage across five storage stages (n = 5 per stage). Results showed fungal communities exhibited stronger stage-dependent restructuring than bacteria (ANOSIM: R = 0.24, P = 0.002), with spoilage-associated taxa increasingly dominant. Metabolomic profiling revealed carbohydrate-related metabolites declined while lipid-associated compounds accumulated during decay. Integrated analysis indicated dominant fungal genera were more strongly correlated with key differential metabolites than bacterial genera. These findings provide insights into the ecological and biochemical changes associated with persimmon spoilage and may inform future early monitoring approaches.