Efficacy of coupling gamma irradiation with calcium chloride and lemongrass oil in maintaining guava fruit quality and inhibiting fungal growth during cold storage

Abstract

This study was performed to explore the efficacy of combining more than one postharvest treatment in maintaining some quality attributes and reducing fungal pathogenicity in cold-stored guava fruits. The investigated postharvest treatments included the control, CaCl 2 (4%), lemongrass oil (2 dm 3 kg -1 ), gamma (γ) irradiation (0.2, 0.4 and 0.6 kGy), 0.4 kGy γ irradiation + CaCl 2 (4%), and 0.4 kGy γ irradiation + lemongrass oil (2 dm 3 kg -1 ). The studied physiochemical attributes included weight loss, decay percentage, fruit firmness, total soluble solids (TSS), titratable acidity (TA), and vitamin C content. Different fungal species were also isolated from decayed fruits and were identified as Alternaria alternata, Alternaria solani, Aspergillus niger, Botrytis cinerea, Fusarium solani and Rhizopus stolonifer. The severity of infection for the different fungi was determined, and an in vitro antifungal assay was conducted for lemongrass oil. All the investigated treatments generally reduced decay and water loss percentages, and controlled TSS, TA and vitamin C decrements that occurred during cold storage. On the other hand, higher irradiation doses generally increased fruit softness, and the 0.4 kGy γ dose did not contribute to the overall fruit quality when coupled with CaCl 2 and lemongrass oil, compared to CaCl 2 and lemongrass oil treatments alone.Ke y wor d s: cold storage, fungal growth, postharvest, Psidium guajava L.

The Effect of Pre- and Postharvest Calcium Gluconate Treatments on Physicochemical Characteristics and Bioactive Compounds of Sweet Cherry during Cold Storage

“…It was reported that Ca applications strengthen the cell wall and membrane structure, making the fruit more resistant to fungal activity (Wang and Long, 2015). Similarly, in some previous studies, conducted in peach (Salem et al, 2016) and kiwifruit (Hassanein et al, 2018), Ca treatments also reduced deterioration during storage.…”

Combined effects of hot water and Eucalyptus leaf extract on the storability of Cyprus local mandarin

“…Previous studies reported that the use of edible coatings [10][11][12] propolis [13], chitosan [14], plants extract or essential oils [15][16][17][18][19] calcium salts [20,21] provides successful control of postharvest fruit decay and improves the storability of fruits. Apart from this, postharvest heat treatment has also reported to provide effective control of postharvest decay and prevent quality loss in storage rooms [22][23][24][25][26].…”

Combined Effects of Hot Water and Eucalyptus Leaf Extract on the Storability of Cyprus Local Mandarin

“…Fruits were stored for 60 days and fruit quality analysis was performed with 20 days interval (20,40 and 60 days of storage). At the mentioned days, 10 fruits from each of the above mentioned treatment were taken out from the storage room and the following quality parameters were measured.…”

“…However, there is an increasing public concern about the use of fungicides which increased the need for controlling postharvest decay in environmentally friendly methods [4,9]. Previous studies reported that the use of edible coatings [10][11][12] propolis [13], chitosan [14], plants extract or essential oils [15][16][17][18][19] calcium salts [20,21] provides successful control of postharvest fruit decay and improves the storability of fruits. Apart from this, postharvest heat treatment has also reported to provide effective control of postharvest decay and prevent quality loss in storage rooms [22][23][24][25][26].…”