scholarly journals Exogenous Melatonin Reduces Lignification and Retains Quality of Green Asparagus (Asparagus officinalis L.)

Foods ◽  
2021 ◽  
Vol 10 (9) ◽  
pp. 2111
Author(s):  
Athip Boonsiriwit ◽  
Myungho Lee ◽  
Minhwi Kim ◽  
Pontree Itkor ◽  
Youn Suk Lee

Asparagus (Asparagus officinalis L.) is highly perishable because of its high respiration rate, which continues after harvesting and leads to weight loss, increased hardness, color change, and limited shelf life. Melatonin is an indoleamine that plays an important role in abiotic stress. This study was designed to investigate the effects of melatonin on the quality attributes of green asparagus during cold storage. Green asparagus was soaked in a melatonin solution (50, 100, and 200 μM) for 30 min and then stored at 4 °C under 90% relative humidity for 25 days. The results indicated that melatonin treatment delayed the post-harvest senescence of asparagus and maintained high chlorophyll and vitamin C levels. Melatonin treatment hindered phenylalanine ammonia-lyase and peroxidase activities and reduced lignin content, thereby delaying the increase in firmness. Moreover, melatonin treatment enhanced catalase and superoxide dismutase activities, leading to reduced hydrogen peroxide content. These results indicate that melatonin treatment can be used to maintain the post-harvest quality and prolong the shelf life of green asparagus.

Foods ◽  
2021 ◽  
Vol 10 (2) ◽  
pp. 478
Author(s):  
Stefania Toscano ◽  
Valeria Rizzo ◽  
Fabio Licciardello ◽  
Daniela Romano ◽  
Giuseppe Muratore

The aim of the study was to assess, through a comparative shelf-life test, the suitability of two packaging materials, namely macro-perforated polypropylene (PP MA) and micro-perforated coextruded polypropylene (PP C), for the quality preservation of green asparagus (Asparagus officinalis L. ‘Vegalim’). Quality of spears was evaluated during 30 days at refrigerated storage by monitoring chemical, physical, and enzymatic parameters as well as sensory descriptors. PP C kept headspace composition close to suggested values for fresh green asparagus. Total color difference increased during the storage and it was highly correlated with chlorophyll-a and carotenoids, however, sensory color perception did not change significantly until 22 days of storage. PP C maintained ascorbic acid concentrations close to the initial levels, limited total phenolic compound loss to 24% (45% in PP MA), determined an increase of 72% in fiber content and small changes in lignin value; enzymatic changes were significantly inhibited. Significant sensorial differences were detected after 22 days of storage, with PP C performing better than PP MA. PP C film was confirmed as the best choice, limiting weight loss and maintaining a fresh-like appearance during 30 days of storage, thus allowing an extension in postharvest life.


Agronomy ◽  
2021 ◽  
Vol 11 (5) ◽  
pp. 937
Author(s):  
Francisco Javier López-Moreno ◽  
Santiago Atero-Calvo ◽  
Eloy Navarro-León ◽  
Begoña Blasco ◽  
Teresa Soriano ◽  
...  

Green asparagus (Asparagus officinalis L.) is a widely grown and consumed crop which provides high-level nutritional interest. In recent years, the decline syndrome in asparagus plantations has been rapidly augmenting. This syndrome causes the early death of whole plants, also negatively affecting the new replanting. Decline causes notable economic losses in the sector. The objective of this work was to verify the effect of different treatments against asparagus decline syndrome on the physiological parameters and nutritional quality of the spears. To meet the objective, four different treatments were applied to asparagus plots strongly affected by decline syndrome: (T1) untreated control soil, (T2) biofumigation with Brassica pellets, (T3) biofumigation with chicken manure pellets, and (T4) disinfestation of the soil with Dazomet. The cumulative yield and physiological and quality parameters of green asparagus spears were studied. Thus, malondialdehyde (MDA), photosynthetic pigments, glutathione (GSH), ascorbate (AsA), total phenols, flavonoids, anthocyanin, antioxidant test, mineral nutrients, and the amino acid profile were measured on asparagus spears. The results showed that the Brassica pellets and Dazomet treatments were the most effective against the damage caused by the decline syndrome. However, it would be necessary to monitor the evolution in the following years.


2021 ◽  
Vol 4 (2) ◽  
pp. 1056-1066
Author(s):  
Nguyen Hong Hanh ◽  
Nguyen Thi Ai Nghia ◽  
Nguyen Thi Ngoc Dinh ◽  
Do Thi Huong

A two-season field trial was carried out in the Upland Crop Experiment Field of the Faculty of Agronomy, Vietnam National University of Agriculture (VNUA) to assess the effects of three furrow heights (20, 35, and 50cm) and three manure compost levels (15, 25, and 35 tons ha-1) on the growth, yield, and quality of green asparagus (Asparagus officinalis L.) grown organically. The experiments were arranged in a randomized completely block design (RCBD) with three replications. The results showed that the harvested yield was highest (11.3 and 25.1 quintals ha-1 in the 2019 autumn and 2020 spring season, respectively) in the treatment with a furrow height of 35cm and compost level of 35 tons ha-1 in both seasons, and explained by the increased spear diameters and number of spears per plant in this treatment when the furrow height and compost level were increased. Additionally, the chlorophyll content, water loss, and dry matter weight of the spears also increased when the furrow height and compost level increased. The obtained quality of the spears under organic management at the furrow height of 35 cm and compost level of 35 tons ha-1 was higher than the other treatments with higher reducing sugars, vitamin C, and Brix values, while the residue nitrate contents of all the treatments were lower than the allowed safety threshold.


Author(s):  
Jakellinye Miranda ◽  
Suélen Braga de Andrade, Andressa Vighi Schiavon ◽  
Pedro Luis Panisson Kaltbach Lemos ◽  
Cláudia Simone Madruga Lima ◽  
Marcelo Barbosa Malgarim

Peach is a climacteric highly-perishable fruit whose post-harvest preservation relies largely on cold storage. The combination of the last with other technologies allows to extend the shelf life of this product. One alternative is the utilization of salicylic acid, a natural compound involved in many physiological phenomena such as resistance against diseases and ripening. Considering these facts, the objective of the present work was to evaluate the effect of pre-harvest application of salicylic acid solutions on the quality of ‘Chimarrita’ peaches during post-harvest cold storage. The experiment was conducted at the Federal University of Pelotas/RS, in the campus of Capão do Leão/RS - Brazil. The application of salicylic acid solutions was performed by direct pulverization on the fruits, 30 days prior to harvest. The concentrations were: 0,0 (control); 1,0; 1,5; and 2,0 mM. After harvest, the fruits were stored in a cold chamber at 1,0 ± 0,5°C and 85-90% RH, for 30 days. The analyses were performed at the following cold storage periods (plus 2 days at room temperature of 20°C to all treatments, in order to simulate commercialization conditions): 10 (+2) days; 20 (+2) days; e 30 (+2) days. The variables evaluated were: mass loss (%); flesh firmness (N); DA index; color (L, a*, b* and hue angle); wooliness incidence (%); rot incidence (%); total soluble solids (°Brix); pH; titrable acidity (% of organic acids); and ratio. The salicylic acid doses and/or the cold storage periods had significant effects on all the evaluated parameters. For most of the parameters analyzed, the intermediate dosis of 1mM (and also 1,5mM) of salicilic acid showed the most promising results. Therefore, the application of salicylic acid solutions 30 days prior to harvest is a technique which can be combined to cold storage in order to shift the quality and the shelf-life of ‘Chimarrita’ peaches.


2020 ◽  
Vol 12 (9) ◽  
pp. 216
Author(s):  
E. P. da Silva ◽  
A. Figueiredo Neto ◽  
J. C. Silva ◽  
V. P. Donzeli ◽  
M. S. Costa ◽  
...  

One of the main problems faced by mango growers in the San Francisco Valley, Brazil, is caused by fungi. Among them, the genus Alternaria, Lasodiploida and Colletotrichum stand out. Sanitization methods have been studied in order to control the proliferation of these microorganisms and increase the shelf life of the fruits. Thus, two methods of sanitization were evaluated: Ozone and chlorine dioxide, in the control of fungi of the genus Alternaria and in the increase of post-harvest quality of Palmer mango fruits. We used a 3 × 5 factorial design with three treatments applied to fruits previously inoculated with fungi, five evaluation periods and five replications, totaling 75 experimental units. The treatments consisted of ozonated water at 3 ppm, chlorine dioxide at 12 ppm, and a control without sanitization. We noted the full development of fungi from the 10th day after contamination, more significantly for the control and to a lesser extent for the treatment with ozone. The methods of conservation with ozone and chlorine dioxide proved efficient in the conservation of fruits. The treatment with chlorine dioxide shows a significant efficiency in the control of penetration of fungi of the genus Alternaria inside the fruits.


Sign in / Sign up

Export Citation Format

Share Document