Dynamic Changes in Endophytic Microorganisms and Metabolites During Natural Drying of Licorice

The method of drying licorice is an important factor affecting the quality of the final product. To determine the best processing method of licorice postharvest, we investigated the interaction of increasing aridity between the endophytic microorganisms and the accumulation of metabolites. Samples from the roots of licorice growing along an aridity gradient during the natural drying process were collected, and the metabolic components, the content of the main active substances and the dynamic changes of the endophytic microbial community were assessed. The glycyrrhizic acid and liquiritin contents decreased slightly or remained flat during natural drying, whereas those of liquiritigenin and isoliquiritigenin increased slightly. Moreover, the Shannon index of endophytic microbial diversity of licorice was the highest in the fresh period and showed a downward trend during the drying process. When the licorice were fresh, Cladosporiaceae and Burkholderiaceae were the dominant family present, but after drying, Nectriaceae and Enterobacteriaceae were the dominant families. A similar trend was also found in which the differential metabolites of licorice were reduced during natural drying. Furthermore, correlation analysis between dominant families and differential metabolites showed that there was a correlation between the two. Therefore, fresh processing is an effective drying method to ensure the quality of licorice. This study revealed the relationship of endophytic microbiota and changes in the licorice metabolites during different stages of drying, which provided a scientific basis for the drying method of licorice.

Caracterização de uvas-passas da variedade "Crimson" submetidas a pré-tratamentos produzidas por diferentes métodos de secagem natural / Characterization of "Crimson" raisins submitted to pretreatments produced by different natural drying methods

Considerando a necessidade aperfeiçoamento de técnicas de secagem e utilização de pré-tratamento na produção de uvas-passas, o presente trabalho teve como objetivo caracterizar uvas-passas submetidas a pré-tratamentos por diferentes métodos de secagem natural, em termos das seguintes grandezas: tempo de secagem, rendimento da operação em relação à massa fresca, e qualidade do produto final. Quanto ao rendimento da operação, obteve-se um rendimento médio de 19,44%. Quanto à qualidade do produto final, a umidade final obtida atendeu os valores da legislação vigente no Brasil para frutas frescas, abaixo de 25%. Houve diferença estatística para a secagem ao sol com pré-tratamento em relação aos valores de pH, sólidos solúveis e tonalidade b*. Quanto aos demais parâmetros, não houve diferença estatística entre os resultados, sendo recomendada a utilização de pré-tratamento para acelerar o processo de secagem sem prejuízos na qualidade do produto final.

РАЗРАБОТКА И ИСПЫТАНИЕ СОЛНЕЧНОЙ УСТАНОВКИ С ПОЛИКАРБОНАТНЫМ ПОКРЫТИЕМ ДЛЯ СУШКИ ПРОДУКТОВ СЕЛЬСКОГО ХОЗЯЙСТВА

The proposed solar drying system significantly reduces the drying time and improves the quality of the product, including the preservation of vitamins. When drying rosehip, a laboratory analysis for vitamin "C" showed that 28% of this vitamin is destroyed during natural drying, and 17% when using a solar dryer.The drying speed increases by 2.5 - 4 times compared to traditional outdoor drying.In the proposed installation, you can dry different agricultural products, you can change the coating of the solar drying unit. In S/D, the air temperature is higher than in the environment from about 13 to 32 degrees Celsius, depending on weather conditions.The drying process in the S/D apparatus allows you to ensure the purity of the products. S/D is covered and during the drying process the product is not contaminated with dust and rain, by influence of dew, is not damaged by birds, insects or wasps.This device is convenient for transportation, during the day it can be moved and rotated to align to the sun.The proposed solar dryer is easy to manufacture and can be widely used in large and small farms, private and subsidiary farms.

The effects of different drying methods on some physical and chemical properties of ‘Eksikara’ grape cultivar grown in Karaman region

In this work, four different drying methods, namely natural drying in sun, natural drying in shade, natural drying in sun using a dipping solution and natural drying in shade using dipping solution were used to drying Ekşikara grapes growing in Karaman, Turkey. While aw values of all grapes were decreased during drying, total soluble solids content increased. The values of pH and total acidity in grape samples significantly increased during the drying period due to the increase in dry matter content. The results showed that all the drying treatments significantly increased the total phenolic content, total antioxidant activity, trans-resveratrol, organic acid and sugar compounds. Trans-resveratrol amounts were slightly higher in the samples dried in the shade and in the dipping solution treatment and decreased as the drying time increases. An increase in organic acid and sugar contents was observed depending on the drying time. The change of colour was comparatively faster in dried samples with dipping solution. It was found that dipping solution treatment (7 days) reduced the drying time by half when compared to the samples without dipping solution treatment (15 days). This result is important for the grape producers of Karaman/Turkey, where the drying period under sun generally take 15 days.

Drying kinetics of Amaranthus cruentus ‘BRS Alegria’ seeds in natural and artificial methods

ABSTRACT The seeds of most crops are often harvested with water concentrations above the recommended levels; for instance, amaranth crops can be harvested under water contents up to 40%. Therefore, drying of the harvest is essential to preserve its post-harvest quality. Thus, the objective of this study was to investigate the drying kinetics of Amaranthus cruentus ‘BRS Alegria’ seeds dried via natural and artificial methods. Drying experiments were conducted in laboratory under natural methods, in shaded and open sun conditions, and also under artificial drying at temperatures of 60, 80 and 100 °C. The average temperatures of the seed mass were 30, 40, 50, 60, and 70 °C for the natural drying methods, shaded and open sun, and under the artificial drying at temperatures of 60, 80, and 100 °C. The modified Midilli equation proved to be the best model for describing the drying kinetics of Amaranthus cruentus ‘BRS Alegria’ seeds. For the artificial drying method at temperatures of 60, 80, and 100 °C, durations of 2.5, 3.5, and 7 hours were respectively required to reduce the water content from 21.1% to 11.5%; and, 4.25, 4.75, and 10 hours to reduce concentration 21.1% to 8.5%. For natural drying under open sun, a drying time of 15 hours was required; for shaded conditions, a drying time of 164 hours was required until the water concentration reduced to 13% which was the equilibrium moisture.