Pre‐storage application of L‐arginine mitigates chilling injury and maintains quality of Sandhuri guava fruit

Abstract

Guava being highly chilling sensitive fruit exhibits limited storability. In two separate studies, guava cv. Sandhuri fruit treated with L-arginine (0, 1, 2, or 3 mM) were kept at either 10 ± 1°C with 90 ± 5% RH (Study-1) and 5 ± 1°C with 90 ± 5% RH (Study-2).Results indicated that application of 1 mM arginine was effective for maintaining higher firmness (16.17 N), total soluble solids (4.9°Brix), carotenoids (3.01 mg 100 ml −1 FW) at 10°C. However, no signs of chilling injury (CI) were observed in guava when stored at 10°C. During study-2, application of 1 mM arginine to guava fruit significantly retained higher fruit firmness (29 N), marketability (58.3%), anthocyanins (0.13 ∆A g −1 FW), phenolic contents (647 mg GAE 100 g −1 FW) with reduced CI during storage at 5°C than control. Conclusively, the application of 1 mM arginine enhanced chilling tolerance and maintained the quality of guava fruit kept at 5°C for 24 days. Practical applicationsThe major constraint of guava industry is short postharvest life which limits long-term storage and distant marketing. Cold storage of guava at low temperature causes chilling injury and reduces fruit quality. Present work identified that pre-storage application of L-arginine (1 mM) helpful for mitigating chilling injury and maintaining fruit quality at low storage temperature (5°C). The technology can be implemented in the guava industry for long storage and transport to distant markets.

Attenuation of Chilling Injury and Improving Antioxidant Capacity of Persimmon Fruit by Arginine Application

“…Nitric oxide plays significant role in delaying senescence and improving cellular permeability by eliminating ROS, thereby reducing cell membrane permeability and preventing rapid dehydration of the persimmon fruit and rapid weight loss during storage period [ 12 , 13 ]. Ali et al [ 40 ] showed in “Sandhuri” guava fruit that arginine application decreased the weight loss by the maintenance of membrane integrity during low-temperature storage. The results confirmed the results of the Hasan et al [ 12 ] study on cucumbers treated with L-arginine.…”

“…The increase in carotenoid concentration during storage occurs as a consequence of the postharvest ripening process as well as the reduction in TA and firmness. Therefore, the effect of L-arginine treatment on delaying the changes of these parameters could be attributed to a delay of the postharvest ripening process throughout an increment of the activity of the antioxidative enzymes, which are involved in reducing reactive oxygen radicals based damages [ 12 , 40 ].…”

Assessment of bioactive compounds, antioxidant potential, and enzymatic activity in different guava (Psidium guajava) cultivars

“…The authors noticed a strong correlation between higher SOD, POD, and CAT activities and higher eating quality in 200 ppm ascorbic acid (AA)treated than AA-untreated guava fruits. Similar works have been conducted, mostly aiming to improve the storability and shelf life of guava fruits using different treatments such as chitosan coating (Hong et al, 2012), melatonin (Fan et al, 2022), L-arginine (Ali et al, 2022), and near-freezing temperature (Xiao et al, 2022). The main focus is to maintain fresh-like quality traits of guava fruits, which are highly perishable and deteriorate quickly under storage.…”