Potential of commercial essential oils mixture to prevent infections of orange fruits by Penicillium expansum
2018
Čabarkapa, Ivana (https://orcid.org/0000-0003-2215-4281) | Suturović, Irena (https://orcid.org/0000-0001-6096-6374) | Blagojev, Nevena (https://orcid.org/0000-0002-5049-0488) | Tomičić, Zorica (https://orcid.org/0000-0001-9321-0872) | Tomičić, Ružica (https://orcid.org/0000-0002-5602-8761)
Fresh oranges, among other citrus fruits, are very susceptible to mould contamination, which leads to quality loss and health hazards. The main problems to be solved are: reduce spoilage, avoid foodborne diseases and preserve attractive flavor, taste and appearance. Chemical control of undesirable moulds resulted in fungal resistance to commonly used fungicides, and also safety of chemical additives has been questioned recently. All these concerns have forced food industry to find some natural alternatives for food preservation. Aromatic herbs and their essential oils have been extensively investigated to substitute synthetic preservatives, since they are rich in natural antifungal compounds. In this research, the commercial mixture of some essential oils (FITO-PREVENT) has been examined on its ability to prevent infection of oranges by common citrus contaminant – Penicillium expansum. Four groups of oranges were used in experiments: (1) No treated and uninfected; (2) treated and uninfected; (3) treated and infected and 4) no treated and infected. To infect the fruits, 20 μL of spore suspension, containing 106 spores per mL, were inoculated at three sites of the fruit, using 0.5-mm-diameter needles, piercing it to a depth of 1.5 mm. Fruits were treated by coating fruits with FITO-PREVENT. Infection development was monitored visually and by determination of the total mould count at cut 1 cm2-pieces of inoculated peel, for 7, 14 and 21 days. Changes of the fruit weight were also monitored. The first signs of infection were visualized after 14 days in control group (no treated, infected). In the other three groups of oranges no signs of infection were observed after 21 days. These results suggested that FITO-PREVENT possess great potential to be used as fruit preservative, since its application has led to the complete absence of disease in infected oranges.
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