Synergistic antifungal mechanism of cinnamaldehyde and nonanal against Aspergillus flavus and its application in food preservation.

Aspergillus flavus colonization on agricultural products during preharvest and postharvest results in tremendous economic losses. Inspired by the synergistic antifungal effects of essential oils, the aims of this study were to explore the mechanism of combined cinnamaldehyde and nonanal (SCAN) against A. flavus and to evaluate the antifungal activity of SCAN loading into diatomite (DM). Shriveled mycelia were observed by scanning electron microscopy, especially in the SCAN treatment group. Calcofluor white staining, transmission electron microscopy, dichloro-dihydro-fluorescein diacetate staining and the inhibition of key enzymes in tricarboxylic acid cycle indicated that the antifungal mechanism of SCAN against A. flavus was related to the cell wall damage, reactive oxygen species accumulation and energy metabolism interruption. RNA sequencing revealed that some genes involved in antioxidation were upregulated, whereas genes responsible for cell wall biosynthesis, oxidative stress, cell cycle and spore development were significantly downregulated, supporting the occurrence of cellular apoptosis. In addition, compared with the control group, conidia production in 1.5 mg/mL DM/cinnamaldehyde, DM/nonanal and DM/SCAN groups were decreased by 27.16%, 48.22% and 76.66%, respectively, and the aflatoxin B1 (AFB1) contents decreased by 2.00%, 73.02% and 84.15%, respectively. These finding suggest that DM/SCAN complex has potential uses in food preservation.

Developing active and intelligent biodegradable packaging from food waste and byproducts: A review of sources, properties, film production methods, and their application in food preservation.

Food waste and byproducts (FWBP) are a global issue impacting economies, resources, and health. Recycling and utilizing these wastes, due to processing and economic constraints, face various challenges. However, valuable components in food waste inspire efficient solutions like active intelligent packaging. Though research on this is booming, its material selectivity, effectiveness, and commercial viability require further analysis. This paper categorizes FWBP and explores their potential for producing packaging from both animal and plant perspectives. In addition, the preparation/fabrication methods of these films/coatings have also been summarized comprehensively, focusing on the advantages and disadvantages of these methods and their commercial adaptability. Finally, the functions of these films/coatings and their ultimate performance in protecting food (meat, dairy products, fruits, and vegetables) are also reviewed systematically. FWBP provide a variety of methods for the application of edible films, including being made into coatings, films, and fibers for food preservation, or extracting active substances directly or indirectly from them (in the form of encapsulation) and adding them to packaging to endow them with functions such as barrier, antibacterial, antioxidant, and pH response. In addition, the casting method is the most commonly used method for producing edible films, but more film production methods (extrusion, electrospinning, 3D printing) need to be tried to make up for the shortcomings of the current methods. Finally, researchers need to conduct more in-depth research on various active compounds from FWBP to achieve better application effects and commercial adaptability.

Synergistic mechanism of steam blanching and freezing conditions on the texture of frozen yellow peaches based on macroscopic and microscopic properties.

Freezing and blanching are essential processing steps in the production of frozen yellow peaches, inevitably leading to texture softening of the fruit. In this study, the synergistic mechanism of stem blanching, freezing conditions (-20°C, -40°C, -80°C, and liquid nitrogen [-173°C]), and sample sizes (cubes, slices, and half peaches) on macroscopic properties of texture, cellular structure, and ice crystal size distribution of frozen yellow peaches were measured. Blanching enhanced the heat and mass transfer rates in the subsequent freezing process. For nonblanched samples, cell membrane integrity was lost at any freezing rate, causing a significant reduction in textural quality. Slow freezing further exacerbated the texture softening, while the ultra-rapid freezing caused structural rupture. For blanched samples, the half peaches softened the most. The water holding capacity and fracture stress were not significantly affected by changes in freezing rate, although the ice crystal size distribution was more susceptible to the freezing rate. Peach cubes that had undergone blanching and rapid freezing (-80°C) experienced 4% less drip loss than nonblanched samples. However, blanching softened yellow peaches more than any freezing conditions. The implementation of uniform and shorter duration blanching, along with rapid freezing, has been proven to be more effective in preserving the texture of frozen yellow peaches. Optimization of the blanching process may be more important than increasing the freezing rate to improve the textural quality of frozen yellow peaches.

Review of osmotic dehydration: Promising technologies for enhancing products' attributes, opportunities, and challenges for the food industries.

Osmotic dehydration (OD) is an efficient preservation technology in that water is removed by immersing the food in a solution with a higher concentration of solutes. The application of OD in food processing offers more benefits than conventional drying technologies. Notably, OD can effectively remove a significant amount of water without a phase change, which reduces the energy demand associated with latent heat and high temperatures. A specific feature of OD is its ability to introduce solutes from the hypertonic solution into the food matrix, thereby influencing the attributes of the final product. This review comprehensively discusses the fundamental principles governing OD, emphasizing the role of chemical potential differences as the driving force behind the molecular diffusion occurring between the food and the osmotic solution. The kinetics of OD are described using mathematical models and the Biot number. The critical factors essential for optimizing OD efficiency are discussed, including product characteristics, osmotic solution properties, and process conditions. In addition, several promising technologies are introduced to enhance OD performance, such as coating, skin treatments, freeze-thawing, ultrasound, high hydrostatic pressure, centrifugation, and pulsed electric field. Reusing osmotic solutions to produce innovative products offers an opportunity to reduce food wastes. This review explores the prospects of valorizing food wastes from various food industries when formulating osmotic solutions for enhancing the quality and nutritional value of osmotically dehydrated foods while mitigating environmental impacts.

Postbiotics-enriched flaxseed mucilage coating: A solution to improving postharvest quality and shelf life of strawberry.

This research aimed to assess the effects of flaxseed mucilage (Mu) coatings supplemented with postbiotics (P) obtained from Lactobacillus acidophilus LA-5 on various physical, biochemical, and microbial characteristics of strawberry fruits. Strawberry fruits were immersed for 2 min in Mu2.5 (2.5 % mucilage in distilled water), Mu5 (5 % mucilage in distilled water), P-Mu2.5 (2.5 % mucilage in undiluted postbiotics) and P-Mu5 (5 % mucilage in undiluted postbiotics) solutions and were stored at 4 °C and 85 RH for 12 days. All coatings were effective in reducing fungal count compared to the uncoated control fruits. Mu5 coating exhibited the highest efficacy, reducing fungal count by 2.85 log10 CFU/g, followed by Mu2.5 (1.47 log10 CFU/g reduction) and P-Mu2.5 groups (0.90 log10 CFU/g reduction). The fruits coated with edible coatings showed significant delays in the change of weight loss, pH, and total soluble solids as compared to the uncoated fruits. The coating containing postbiotics i.e., P-Mu5 also showed a significant increase in the total phenolic contents, total flavonoid content, antioxidant capacity, and total anthocyanin content at the end of storage relative to the uncoated fruits. Thus, Mu and P-Mu coatings may be a useful approach to maintaining the postharvest quality of strawberry fruits during cold storage.

Chilled Pacu (Piaractus mesopotamicus) fillets: Modeling Pseudomonas spp. and psychrotrophic bacteria growth and monitoring spoilage indicators by 1H NMR and GC-MS during storage.

This study aimed to assess the growth of Pseudomonas spp. and psychrotrophic bacteria in chilled Pacu (Piaractus mesopotamicus), a native South American fish, stored under chilling conditions (0 to 10 °C) through the use of predictive models under isothermal and non-isothermal conditions. Growth kinetic parameters, maximum growth rate (µmax, 1/h), lag time (tLag, h), and (Nmax, Log10 CFU/g) were estimated using the Baranyi and Roberts microbial growth model. Both kinetic parameters, growth rate and lag time, were significantly influenced by temperature (P < 0.05). The square root secondary model was used to describe the bacteria growth as a function of temperature. Secondary models, √µ = 0.016 (T + 10.13) and √µ =0.017 (T + 9.91) presented a linear correlation with R2 values >0.97 and were further validated under non-isothermal conditions. The model's performance was considered acceptable to predict the growth of Pseudomonas spp. and psychrotrophic bacteria in refrigerated Pacu fillets with bias and accuracy factors between 1.24 and 1.49 (fail-safe) and 1.45-1.49, respectively. Fish biomarkers and spoilage indicators were assessed during storage at 0, 4, and 10 °C. Volatile organic compounds, VOCs (1-hexanol, nonanal, octenol, and indicators 2-ethyl-1-hexanol) showed different behavior with storage time (P > 0.05). 1H NMR analysis confirmed increased enzymatic and microbial activity in Pacu fillets stored at 10 °C compared to 0 °C. The developed and validated models obtained in this study can be used as a tool for decision-making on the shelf-life and quality of refrigerated Pacu fillets stored under dynamic conditions from 0 to 10 °C.

Preparation and Characterization of Pullulan-Based Packaging Paper for Fruit Preservation.

Improving the shelf lives of fruits is challenging. The biodegradable polysaccharide pullulan exhibits excellent film-forming ability, gas barrier performance, and natural decomposability, making it an optimal material for fruit preservation. To overcome problems of high cost and film porosity of existing packaging technologies, we aimed to develop pullulan-based packaging paper to enhance the shelf lives of fruits. A thin paper coating comprising a mixture of 15 wt.% pullulan solution at various standard viscosities (75.6, 77.8, and 108.5 mPa·s) with tea polyphenols (15:2) and/or vitamin C (150:1) improved the oxygen transmission rate (120-160 cm3 m-2·24 h·0.1 MPa), water vapor transmission rate (<5.44 g·mm-1 m-2·h·kPa), maximum free radical clearance rate (>87%), and antibacterial properties of base packaging paper. Grapes wrapped with these pullulan-based papers exhibited less weight loss (>4.41%) and improved hardness (>16.4%) after 10 days of storage compared to those of control grapes (wrapped in untreated/base paper). Grapes wrapped with pullulan-based paper had >12.6 wt.% total soluble solids, >1.5 mg/g soluble protein, >0.44 wt.% titratable acidity, and ≥4.5 mg 100 g-1 ascorbic acid. Thus, pullulan-based paper may prolong the shelf life of grapes with operational convenience, offering immense value for fruit preservation.

Shelf-life extension of Pacific white shrimp (Litopenaeus vannamei) using sodium alginate/chitosan incorporated with cell-free supernatant of Streptococcus thermophilus FUA 329 during cold storage.

Seafood is highly perishable and has a short shelf-life. This study investigated the effect of chitosan and alginate (CH-SA) coating combined with the cell-free supernatant of Streptococcus thermophilus FUA329 (CFS) as a preservative on the quailty of white shrimp (Litopenaeus vannamei) refrigerated at 4° for 0, 3, 6, 9, 12, 15 days. Freshly shrimps were randomly divided into four groups: the CFS group (400 mL); the CH-SA group (1% chitosan/1% alginate); the CFS-CH-SA group (1% chitosan/1% alginate with 400 mL CFS) are treatment groups, and the control group (400 mL sterile water). The CFS-CH-SA coating effectively suppressed microbial growth total viable count and chemical accumulation (pH, total volatile basic nitrogen, thiobarbituric acid reactive substance) compared with the control. Additionally, the CFS-CH-SA coating improved the texture and sensory characteristics of shrimp during storage. The coated shrimp exhibited significantly reduced water loss (p < 0.05). The combination of CH-SA coating with CFS treatment can extend the shelf life of shrimp. PRACTICAL APPLICATION: Recently, edible films have received more consideration as a promising method to enhance the shelf life of seafood. The presence of Lactic acid bacteria metabolites in edible films reduces spoilage and improves consumer health. Our findings encourage the application of edible coating incorporated with cell-free supernatant of Streptococcus thermophilus FUA 329 to design multifubctional foods and preserve the qualities of shrimp.

In-package cold plasma treatment to extend the shelf life of food.

Conventional food preservation methods such as heat treatment, irradiation, chemical treatment, refrigeration, and coating have various disadvantages, like loss of food quality, nutrition, and cost-effectiveness. Accordingly, cold plasma is one of the new technologies for food processing and has played an important role in preventing food spoilage. Specifically, in-package cold plasma has become a modern trend to decontaminate, process, and package food simultaneously. This strategy has proven successful in processing various fresh food ingredients, including spinach, fruits, vegetables, and meat. In particular, cold plasma treatment within the package reduces the risk of post-processing contamination. Cryoplasm decontamination within packaging has been reported to reduce significantly the microbial load of many foods' spoilage-causing pathogens. However, studies are needed to focus more on the effects of in-package treatments on endogenous enzyme activity, pest control, and removal of toxic pesticide residues. In this review, we comprehensively evaluated the efficacy of in-package low-temperature plasma treatment to extend the shelf life of various foods. The mechanisms by which cold plasma interacts with food were investigated, emphasizing its effects on pathogen reduction, spoilage mitigation, and surface modification. The review also critically assessed the effects of the treatments on food quality, regulatory considerations, and their potential as viable technologies to improve food safety and packaging life. In-package cold plasma treatment could revolutionize food storage when combined with other sophisticated technologies such as nanotechnology.

Pulsed electric field treatment for preservation of Chlorella suspensions and retention of gelling capacity.

Pulsed electric field (PEF) processing has emerged as an alternative to thermal pasteurization for the shelf-life extension of heat-sensitive liquids at industrial scale. It offers the advantage of minimal alteration in physicochemical characteristics and functional properties. In this study, a pilot-scale continuous PEF processing (Toutlet < 55 °C) was applied to microalgae Chlorella vulgaris (Cv) suspensions (pH = 6.5), which was proposed as a functional ingredient for plant-based foods. Cv suspensions were inoculated with three distinct food spoilage microorganisms (Pseudomonas guariconensis, Enterobacter soli and Lactococcus lactis), isolated from the Cv biomass. PEF treatments were applied with varying electric field strength Eel of 16 to 28 kV/cm, pulse repetition rate f of 100 to 140 Hz, with a pulse width τ of 20 µs and an inlet product temperature Tin of 30 °C. The aim was to evaluate the PEF-induced microbial reduction and monitor the microbial outgrowth during a 10-day cold storage period (10 °C). Maximum inactivation of 4.1, 3.7 and 3.6 logs was achieved (28 kV/cm and 120 Hz) for the investigated isolates, respectively. Under these conditions, the critical electric field strengths Ecrit, above which inactivation was observed, ranged from 22.6 to 24.6 kV/cm. Moreover, repeated PEF treatment resulted in similar inactivation efficiency, indicating its potential to enhance shelf-life further.

Application of hydroxypropyl methylcellulose to improve the wettability of chitosan coating and its preservation performance on tangerine fruits.

Hydroxypropyl methylcellulose (HPMC) was employed as an intermediate layer to enhance interfacial interaction between chitosan (CS) coating and tangerine fruits, thereby improving the preservation effect. Owing to the low surface tension of tangerine fruit (26.04 mN/m), CS coating solutions showed poor wetting properties on fruit peels (contact angle > 100°). However, by applying a 1.0 % (w/v) HPMC coating on fruits, the contact angle of CS solutions with concentrations of 0.5 %, 1.0 %, and 1.5 % (w/v) decreased to 47.0°, 47.4°, and 48.5°, respectively, whereas the spreading coefficient increased to -16.0 mN/m, -17.6 mN/m and -19.8 mN/m, respectively. Subsequently, the effects of the coatings on fruit quality were investigated. The results demonstrated the promising performance of HPMC-CS two-layer coating in inhibiting fruit respiration, reducing decay rate, and maintaining nutrient content. Notably, HPMC-1.5%CS coating not only reduced the decay rate of tangerine fruit by 45 % and 31 %, in comparison to the uncoated group (CK) and pure CS coating respectively, but also maintained a high content of ascorbic acid. Therefore, this study confirmed that the use of amphiphilic polymers for improving the surface properties of fruits can effectively facilitate the wetting of hydrophilic coatings on fruits, and significantly improve the fresh-keeping performance of edible coatings.

Characteristics of hen egg white lysozyme, strategies to break through antibacterial limitation, and its application in food preservation: A review.

Hen egg white lysozyme (HEWL) is used as a food additive in China due to its outstanding antibacterial properties. It is listed as GRAS grade (generally recognized as safe) by the United States Food and Drug Administration (FDA, US) and has been extensively researched and used in food preservation. And the industrial production of HEWL already been realized. Given the complex food system that can affect the antibacterial activity of HEWL, and the limitations of HEWL itself on Gram-negative bacteria. Based on the structure and main biological characteristics of HEWL, this paper focuses on reviewing methods to enhance the stability and antibacterial properties of HEWL. Immobilization tactics such as chemically driven self-assembly, embedding and adsorption address the restriction of poor HEWL antibacterial activity effected by external factors. Both intermolecular and intramolecular modification strategies break the bactericidal deficiencies of HEWL itself. It also comprehensively analyzes the current application status and future prospects of HEWL in the food preservation. There was limited research on the biological methods in modifying HEWL. If the HEWL is genetically engineered, it can broaden its antimicrobial spectrum, improve its other biological activities, so as to further expand its application in the food industry. At present, research on HEWL mainly focused on its antibacterial properties, whereas its application in anti-inflammatory and antioxidant effects also presented great potential.

Revolutionizing tropical fruits preservation: Emerging edible coating technologies.

Tropical fruits, predominantly cultivated in Southeast Asia, are esteemed for their nutritional richness, distinctive taste, aroma, and visual appeal when consumed fresh. However, postharvest challenges have led to substantial global wastage, nearly 50 %. The advent of edible biopolymeric nanoparticles presents a novel solution to preserve the fruits' overall freshness. These nanoparticles, being edible, readily available, biodegradable, antimicrobial, antioxidant, Generally Recognized As Safe (GRAS), and non-toxic, are commonly prepared via ionic gelation owing to the method's physical crosslinking, simplicity, and affordability. The resulting biopolymeric nanoparticles, with or without additives, can be employed in basic formulations or as composite blends with other materials. This study aims to review the capabilities of biopolymeric nanoparticles in enhancing the physical and sensory aspects of tropical fruits, inhibiting microbial growth, and prolonging shelf life. Material selection for formulation is crucial, considering coating materials, the fruit's epidermal properties, internal and external factors. A variety of application techniques are covered such as spraying, and layer-by-layer among others, including their advantages, and disadvantages. Finally, the study addresses safety measures, legislation, current challenges, and industrial perspectives concerning fruit edible coating films.

The dual function of calcium ion in fruit edible coating: Regulating polymer internal crosslinking state and improving fruit postharvest quality.

The edible coating is proved to be a convenient approach for fruit preservation. Among these published explorations, naturally sourced macromolecules and green crosslinking strategies gain attention. This work centers on edible coatings containing Ca2+ as crosslinker for the first time, delving into crosslinking mechanisms, include alginate, chitosan, Aloe vera gel, gums, etc. Additionally, the crucial functions of Ca2+ in fruit's quality control are also elaborated in-depth, involving cell wall, calmodulin, antioxidant, etc. Through a comprehensive review, it becomes evident that Ca2+ plays a dual role in fruit edible coating. Specifically, Ca2+ constructs a three-dimensional dense network structure with polymers through ionic bonding. Moreover, Ca2+ acts directly with cell wall to maintain fruit firmness and serve as a second messenger to participate secondary physiological metabolism. In brief, coatings containing Ca2+ present remarkable effects in preserving fruit and this work may provide guidance for Ca2+ related fruit preservation coatings.

Edible chitosan-based Pickering emulsion coatings: Preparation, characteristics, and application in strawberry preservation.

The long-term application of plant essential oils in food preservation coatings is limited by their poor water solubility and high volatility, despite their recognized synergistic antimicrobial effects in postharvest fruit preservation. To overcome these limitations, a Pickering emulsion loaded with thyme essential oil (TEO) was developed by utilizing hydrogen bonding and electrostatic interactions to induce cross-linking of chitosan particles. This novel emulsion was subsequently applied in the postharvest storage of strawberries. The shear-thinning behavior (flow index <1) and elastic gel-like characteristics of the emulsion made it highly suitable for spray application. Regarding TEO release, the headspace concentration of TEO increased from 0.21 g/L for pure TEO to 1.86 g/L after two instances of gas release due to the stabilizing effect of the chitosan particles at the oil-water interface. Notably, no phase separation was observed during the 10-day storage of the emulsion. Consequently, the emulsion was successfully employed for the postharvest storage of strawberries, effectively preventing undesirable phenomena such as weight loss, a decrease in firmness, an increase in pH, and microbial growth. In conclusion, the developed Pickering emulsion coating exhibits significant potential for fruit preservation applications, particularly for extending the shelf life of strawberries.

Plasma-activated water in combination with coconut exocarp flavonoids emerge as promising preservation technique for golden pompano: Impact of the treatment sequence.

In the current study, the preservation effect of plasma-activated water (PAW), coconut exocarp flavonoids (CF) and their combination on golden pompano fillets during refrigerated storage was investigated with emphasize on the treating sequence. PAW effectively inactivated spoilage bacteria and inhibited total volatile basic nitrogen (TVB-N) increase, while boosted the TBARS and carbonyl values. PAW+CF exerted synergistic effect on extending the period before total bacterial count and TVB-N content reaching acceptance limit than PAW or CF alone (P < 0.05). In addition, their combined treatment effectively reduced fillets discoloration and texture deterioration. Simultaneously, lipid and protein oxidation were significantly inhibited, which was comparable to CF. It was indicated that the treatment sequence of PAW and CF profoundly impact the preservation effect. Specifically, prior CF marinating followed by PAW was more effective than the opposite sequence. Thus, combination of CF followed by PAW served as promising technique for fish fillets preservation.

Moisture loss inhibition with biopolymer films for preservation of fruits and vegetables: A review.

In cold storage, fruits and vegetables still keep a low respiratory rate. Although cold storage is beneficial to maintain the quality of some fruits and vegetables, several factors (temperature and humidity fluctuations, heat inflow, air velocity, light, etc.) will accelerate moisture loss. Biopolymer films have attracted great attention for fruits and vegetables preservation because of their biodegradable and barrier properties. However, there is still a certain amount of water transfer occurring between storage environment/biopolymer films/fruits and vegetables (EFF). The effect of biopolymer films to inhibit moisture loss of fruits and vegetables and the water transfer mechanism in EFF system need to be studied systematically. Therefore, the moisture loss of fruits and vegetables, crucial properties, major components, fabrication methods, and formation mechanisms of biopolymer films were reviewed. Further, this study highlights the EFF system, responses of fruits and vegetables, and water transfer in EFF. This work aims to clarify the characteristics of EFF members, their influence on each other, and water transfer, which is conducive to improving the preservation efficiency of fruits and vegetables purposefully in future studies. In addition, the prospects of studies in EFF systems are shown.

Microbial inactivation of pressure spray combined with high-voltage electrospray and its application in honey raspberry juice.

Pressure spray combined with high-voltage electrospray (PS-ES) has garnered considerable interest as a novel, non-thermal approach for microbial inactivation and preservation of liquid food. This study compared PS-ES with heat treatment (HT) to understand its inactivation mechanism against E. coli and S. aureus in a simulated system. Microbial activity, cell permeability, membrane integrity, membrane potential, and cell membrane structure were assessed. Furthermore, the impact of PS-ES treatment on microbial activity and flavor in honey raspberry juice, was examined. The changes in microbial growth and color during storage were also discussed. The experimental findings revealed that PS-ES treatment effectively reduced the number of E. coli and S. aureus by 1.99 and 1.83 log colony-forming units (CFU/mL). Additionally, it disrupted the integrity of bacterial cell membranes increasing their permeability, which led to the release of cellular proteins and nucleic acids. PS-ES treatment lowered the membrane potential and altered the structure of bacterial proteins. Application of PS-ES in honey raspberry juice reduced bacterial counts from 4.48 log CFU/mL to 1.99 log CFU/mL, with less flavor deterioration compared to HT treatment. After 30 days of storage at 4 °C and room temperature, PS-ES effectively controlled the growth of microorganisms in raspberry juice and maintained the color of the juice.

Application of carboxymethylcellulose in combination with essential oils nano-emulsions edible coating for the preservation of kiwifruit.

The present research investigates the effectiveness of nano-emulsified coatings (C-1, C-2, and C-3) in preserving the kiwifruit at a temperature of 10 ± 2 °C with 90-95 % relative humidity (RH) for 30 days. The nano-emulsions were prepared from varied carboxymethyl cellulose (CMC) concentrations with different combinations of essential oils such as thyme, clove, and cardamom. Dynamic light scattering investigation with Zeta Sizer revealed that C-1, C-2, and C-3 nano-emulsions have nano sizes of 81.3 ± 2.3, 115.3 ± 4.2, and 63.2 ± 3.2 nm, respectively. The scanning electron microscopy images showed that the nanoemulsion of C-1 had homogenous spherical globules, C-2 had voids, and C-3 showed a non-porous structure with uniform dispersion. The X-ray diffraction analysis indicated that C-1, C-2, and C-3 nano-emulsion exhibited distinct crystallinity and peaks. The nano-emulsion C-1 had reduced crystallinity, while C-2 had lower intensity peaks, and C-3 had increased crystallinity. The results documented that compared to control kiwifruit samples, the samples coated with C-3 nano-emulsion have decreased weight loss, decay incidence, soluble solids, maturity index activity, ethylene production, total bacterial count, and increased titratable acid, and firmness attributes. The results of current research are promising and would be applicable in utilization in industrial applications.

The Preservation Effect of Chitosan-hawthorn Leaf Extract Coating on Strawberries.

Strawberries rapidly deteriorate postharvest, necessitating effective measures to extend their shelf life. This study focused on developing an eco-friendly chitosan-based protective film for strawberry preservation. Strawberries were treated with a coating solution containing varying concentrations of hawthorn leaf extract (HLE) (0.4%, 0.7%, and 1.0%), 1.5% chitosan (CH), and 1% acetic acid. The results demonstrated that coating strawberry fruit with 1% CH-HLE notably delayed fruit spoilage. In-depth analysis revealed that, compared with the uncoated strawberry fruits, the 1% CH-HLE coating effectively reduced weight loss, the respiration intensity, malondialdehyde (MDA) levels, and superoxide anion (O2·-) production. Additionally, the coated strawberries exhibited improved firmness, total soluble solids (TSS), vitamin C (Vc) content, titratable acidity (TA), and total phenolic compound (TPC) content. The enzyme activities of superoxide dismutase (SOD) and catalase (CAT) in the CH-HLE-coated strawberries were greater than those in their uncoated counterparts. The application of a 1% CH-HLE coating successfully delayed spoilage and extend the shelf life of the strawberries by approximately 4-5 days. These findings suggest that CH-HLE has significant potential as a resource for protecting fruits and vegetables, offering an environmentally sustainable solution for postharvest preservation.