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Fresh mushrooms are vulnerable to browning and tissue changes after harvest. This study monitored the external appearance, physicochemical quality indicators, and nutritional and functional components of a white beech mushroom (Hypsizygus marmoreus) variety (EG2020) newly developed in Korea during cold storage for up to 42 days. Two existing varieties of white H. marmoreus, namely H6 from Korea and HKT from Japan, were used for comparison. The mechanical texture of EG2020 was superior to H6 and HKT due to the increasing hardness of the pileus with time. Browning, in terms of the total color difference during storage, was found to be the most severe in HKT. In terms of composition, EG2020 had the highest total free sugar content, a large amount of organic acids, and higher sugar content than H6 and HKT. EG2020 also contained the largest amount of β-glucan, and its amount increased during storage. In sensory evaluation, EG2020 received higher scores than HKT in flavor, taste, appearance, and texture. Therefore, the EG2020 variety is more stable than HKT during storage and distribution.

This study was conducted to evaluate the effect of different 1-methylcyclopropene (1-MCP) concentrations on fruit quality of small-sized RubyS apples during cold storage. After harvesting, the fruits were treated with 1-MCP at 0.5 or 1 μL/L concentrations and, subsequently, stored at 0°C for 6 months. After 6 months, the flesh firmness of untreated fruits, which was 85.4 N at harvest, had gradually decreased to 46.5 N; however, that of 1-MCP-treated fruits was maintained at 59.1 and 59.5 N. Titratable acidity (TA) of untreated fruits had also decreased from 0.42 to 0.24%, whereas that of 1-MCP-treated fruits was maintained at 0.26 and 0.27%. Soluble solids content (SSC) did not differ in all fruits. However, the 1-MCP-treated fruits had lower levels of SSC/TA ratio than untreated fruits. Moreover, after 6 months, the ethylene production had increased to 47.0 μL/kg/h in the untreated fruits, whereas 1-MCP blocked the ethylene production at 1.4 and 1.7 μL/kg/h. The weight loss and peel color variables remained unaffected by 1-MCP treatments. Thus, these results indicated that, for RubyS apples, the storability was only 2 months at 0°C without treatment, which can be extended to 6 months with 1-MCP treatments. The application of 1-MCP at 0.5 μL/L concentration is effectively and economically sufficient to maintain the quality of RubyS apples.

This study aimed to investigate the effects of wild indigo (Baptisia tinctoria) root extract as a functional food material, in terms of antioxidant and skin health-related activities. Both water and ethanol (50/50, v/v) extracts showed high phenol content. They were evaluated for antioxidant activity, such as 2,2-diphenyl-1-picrylhydrazyl (DPPH), 2,2′-azino-bis(3-ethylbenzothiazoline-6-sulfonic acid) (ABTS), antioxidant protection factor (PF), and thiobarbituric acid reactive substances (TBARS). While the DPPH radical scavenging activities of water and ethanol extracts were 84.23% and 89.30%, respectively, at 200 μg/mL total phenol content (TPC), the ABTS radical cation scavenging activities were 51.39% and 48.10%, respectively. The water and ethanol extracts also showed desirable antioxidant PF levels of 1.18 and 1.16, respectively. Furthermore, the antioxidant effects on TBARS significantly increased by 37.31% and 51.43%, respectively, in 200 μg/mL of water and ethanol extracts. Both the extracts showed high dose-dependent collagenase inhibitory activities, up to 27.60% and 77.39%, respectively. The ethanol extract showed an elastase inhibitory activity of 37.21%; the tyrosinase inhibitory effect (which facilitates natural skin-whitening) was 59.26% at 200 μg/mL TPC. The hyaluronidase activity inhibition, related to anti-inflammatory activity, was 20.02% for the water extract and 14.30% for the ethanol extract, at 200 μg/mL TPC. Therefore, B. tinctoria extract has potential applications in cosmetics and food supplements due to its antioxidant and skin health promoting activities.