The Effect of Aleo Vera Gel Coating on Physicochemical Characteristics of Two Apricot Fruit Cultivars during Storage Time

Document Type : Research Paper

Authors

1 Department of Horticulture of Science Faculty of Agriculture the University of Zanjan

2 Retired faculty member Department of Horticulture of Science Faculty of Agriculture the University of Zanjan

3 Member of faculty Department of Horticulture of Science Faculty of Agriculture the University of Tabriz

4 Member of Faculty Department of Horticulture of Science Faculty of Agriculture the University of Zanjan

5 Member of Faculty Horticulture Crops Research Department East Azerbaijan Agriculture and Natural Resources Research and Education center, AREEO, Tabriz, Iran

Abstract

Abstract
Introduction Apricot fruit is a carbohydrate-rich commodity and is a good source of fibers, essential minerals, vitamins and organic acids. It is also rich in bioactive compounds i.e. polyphenols and carotenoids that have certain antioxidant character in biological system. It is consumed in fresh, dried and frozen forms or used for the preparation of jam, juices, nectars and extruded products. Therefore, apricot being an attractive nutritious fruit is appreciated by consumers and farmers all over the world and has gained great economic importance over the years. Apricot is a climacteric fruit that presents a high respiratory and metabolic rate and, among stone fruits, is the one that presents the highest ethylene emission. One of the major problems of apricots is the rapid postharvest softening, which limits its storability and marketability. These features results that, at the postharvest, have an extremely short shelf-life of only 1-2 weeks in the cold storage, and pass quickly from maturity to overripe. One of the major problems of apricots is the rapid postharvest softening, which limits its storability and marketability. For this reason, to have acceptable quality fruits, they must be stored with adequate techniques to limit the post-harvest losses. As apricot production and export increase, demands for practical methods of post-harvest quality retention are necessary to improve the post-harvest quality of apricots during postharvest life. Several pre- and postharvest technologies have been used to control postharvest losses, but the use of chemicals as fungicides is restricted in most countries and consumers demand agricultural commodities without pesticide residues. Consumers around the world demand for food of high-quality, without chemical preservatives, and extended shelf life. Therefore, an increased effort has been made to develop new natural preservatives and antimicrobials. Many storage techniques have been developed to extend the marketing distances and holding periods for commodities after harvest. Among these technologies, edible coatings are traditionally used to improve food appearance and preservation. Edible coatings are thin layers of edible material applied to the product surface in addition to or as a replacement for natural protective waxy coatings and provide a barrier to moisture, oxygen and solute movement. They are applied directly on the food surface by dipping, spraying or brushing. Edible coatings are used to create a modified atmosphere and to reduce weight loss during transport and storage. In fact, the barrier characteristics of gas exchange for films and coatings are the subjects of much recent interest. Recently, researchers have developed a gel based on Aloe vera that prolongs the conservation of fresh fruits. This gel is tasteless, colorless and odorless. This natural product is a safe and environmental friendly alternative to synthetic preservatives such as sulfur dioxide. This gel operates through a combination of mechanics, forming a protective layer against the oxygen and moisture of the air and inhibiting the action of micro-organisms that cause food-borne illnesses through its various antibacterial and antifungal compounds. Aloe vera gel-based edible coatings have been shown to prevent moisture and firmness losses, control respiratory rate and delay ripening process slow oxidative browning and reduce microorganism proliferation in fruits. Present study was conducted to evaluate the increasing of apricot storage time, introducing suitable cultivars based on Aloe vera gel coating, effects of Aloe vera gel on the qualitative characteristics of fruit and obtain the optimum concentration of Aloe vera gel required to coating apricot fruits.
Material and methods: Therefore, a factorial experiment was carried out based on a completely randomized design with four replications. The evaluated factors including cultivars “Dorosht-e Malayer” and “Ghermez-e Shahrood”, concentrations of Aloe vera gel [control (non-gel coating fruits), 25% and 33%] and storage time [0 (Harvest), 7, 14 and 21 d)]. Moreover, total soluble solids (TSS), titratable acidity (TA), fruit firmness, pH, percentage of weight loss, antioxidant activity and vitamin C content were determined during storage time.
Results: The results showed that treatment of apricot fruits with Aloe vera gel, especially at 33% concentration, significantly enhanced vitamin C content, titrable acidity, antioxidant capacity and improved tissue firmness, but also reduced soluble solids, weight loss and pH content. Moreover, it was found that vitamin C content, titratable acidity and fruit tissue firmness significantly decreased during storage time, while soluble solids content, weight loss and antioxidant capacity significantly increased. Among the cultivars, “Ghermez-e Shahrood” cultivar had higher soluble solids content, weight loss, pH and antioxidant capacity during storage time, whereas “Dorosht-e Malayer” cultivar had higher titrable acidity, tissue firmness and vitamin C at the end of storage time.
double and triple interaction effects of evaluated factors significantly affected all characteristics, except in antioxidant activity, where just storage time had a significant effect. It was found that the highest vitamin C content in “Dorosht-e Malayer” and “Ghermez-e Shahrood” was obtained at the end of the second week in coated fruits with 33% of Aloe vera gel. TSS content in fruits of “Dorosht-e Malayer” cultivar that coated with 25% and 33% of Aloe vera gel was less than “Ghermez-e Shahrood” cultivar, while Aloe vera gel had no significant effect on TSS content in “Ghermez-e Shahrood” cultivar. Aloe vera gel had no defined pattern on TA concentration but generally, “Dorosht-e Malayer” fruits had higher TA concentration comparing “Ghermez-e Shahrood” fruits During the storage time, the fruit weight loss and firmness were higher in “Ghermez-e Shahrood” as compared with “Dorosht-e Malayer”, however, in the both evaluated cultivars, treatment with Aloe vera gel had a significant positive effect to controlling of fruit weight loss and firmness. Furthermore, coating with Aloe vera gel improved the antioxidant capacity in both evaluated cultivars.
Conclusion: Overall, according to the results, it can be concluded that as compared with “Ghermez-e Shahrood” cultivar, “Dorosht-e Malayer” cultivar showed better quality based on the evaluated parameters and maintained its quality for a longer time. As a conclusion, considering the positive effects of Aloe vera gel, it can be in order to increase the shelf-life and maintaining the quality of apricot fruits.

Keywords


اصغری م ر، احدی ل و ریایی س، 1394. تأثیر کاربرد پس از برداشت اسید سالسیلیک و ژل آلوئه‌ورا بر عمر پس از برداشت و ویژگی‌ها آنتی‌اکسیدانی انگور رقم قزل‌ازوم، علوم باغبانی ایران، شماره 46 جلد 4، صفحات 677-685.
امامی فر آ،  1393. ارزیابی تاثیر ژل آلوئه‌ورا به عنوان پوشش خوراکی بر ویژگی های میکروبی، فیزیکو شیمیایی و حسی توت فرنگی تازه طی انبارداری، فصلنامه فناوری های غذایی، سال دوم، شماره 6، زمستان 93 صفحه 29-15.
خالصی ر، امیری م ا و حبیبی ف، 1397. تأثیر استات کلسیم بر انبارمانی، حفظ ویژگی‌های کیفی و کاهش پوسیدگی پس از برداشت میوه زردآلو رقم شکرپاره. علوم باغبانی ایران، شماره 49 جلد 2، صفحات 493-503.
زرین‌بال م، سلیمانی ج، اسکندری ا، دباغ محمدی نسب ع و رسولی پیروزیان ر، 1389. تأثیر زمان برداشت و بسته‌بندی با اتمسفر تغییر یافته بر عمر انباری میوه چند رقم زردآلو. نشریه علوم باغبانی (علوم و صنایع کشاورزی). شماره 24 جلد 1، صفحات 91-101.
وحدت ش، قاسم­نژاد م، فتوحی قزوینی ر، شیری م ع و خداپرست س ع ا، 1391. اثر غلظت­های مختلف ژل آلوئه ورا بر حفظ کیفیت پس از برداشت میوه توت­فرنگی. نشریه پژوهش­های صنایع غذایی. شماره 22، جلد 3، صفحات 285-271.
AOAC 1984. Official Methods of Analysis, 14. Association of Official Agricultural Chemists. Washington DC. 844-847.
Ahmadi H, Fathollahzadeh H and Mobli H, 2008. Some physical and mechanical properties of apricot fruits, pits and kernels c v tabarzeh. American-Eurasian. Journal of Agricultural and Environmental Sciences 3(5):703-70.
Ahmed M J, Singh Z and Khan A S, 2009. Postharvest Aloe vera gel –coating modulates fruit ripening and quality of ´Arctic Snow´ nectarine kept in ambient and cold storage. International Journal of Food Science and Technology 44, 1024-1033.
Ali S, Khan A S, Nawaz A, Anjum M A, Naz S, Ejaz S and Hussain S, 2019. Aloe vera gel coating delays postharvest browning and maintains quality of harvested litchi fruit. Postharvest Biology and Technology. Volume 157, November, 110960
Almenar E, Catala R, Hernandez-Muñoz P and Gavara R, 2009. Optimization of an active package for wild strawberries based on the release of 2-nonanone. LWT- Food Science and Technology 42:587-593.
Amodio ML, Colelli G, Hasey JK, Kader A A 2007. A comparative study of composition and postharvest performance of organically and conventionally grown kiwifruits. Journal of the Science of Food and Agriculture 87: 1228-1236.
Asghari M R and Babalar M 2010. Use of salycilic acid to increase strawberry fruit total antioxidant activity. Proceedings 6th international symposium, Acta Horticulture 877.
Ayala-Zavala J F, Wang S Y, Wang C Y and González-Aguilar G A 2004. Effect of storage temperatures on antioxidant capacity and aroma compounds in strawberry fruit. LWT-Food Science and Technology 37(7):687-695.
Bifani V, Ramírez C, Ihl M, Rubilar M, García A and Zaritzky N 2007. Effects of murta (Ugni molinae Turcz) extract on gas and water vapor permeability of carboxymethylcellulose-based edible films. LWT-Food Science and Technology 40:1473-1481.
Brand-Williams W, Cuvelier M E and Berset C 1995. Use of a free radical method to evaluate antioxidant activity. Lebensmittel- Wissenschaft Und-Technologie 28:25-30.
Caner C and Aday M S 2009. Maintaining quality of fresh strawberries through various modified atmosphere packaging. Packaging Technology and Science 22:115-122
Choi S and Chung M H 2003. A Review on The relationship Between Aloe vera Component and Their biologic effects. Seminars in Integrative Medicine 1:53-62.
Dalia I Sanchez-Machado, Jaime Lopez-cervantes, Raquel Sendon, Ana Sanches-Silva 2017. Aleo vera: Ancient knowledge with new frontirers. Trends in Food Science & Technology 61 (2017) 94 - 102
Defilippi B G, Rubio P, Pizarro M, Campos-Vargas R, Gudenschwager O and González-Agüero M 2015. Effect of ethylene inhibitors in apricot (Prunus armeniaca L) ripening: action vs biosynthesis. www. Inia. cl/ postcosecha/ files/ 2015/ 02/ Defilippi_damasco_Turquia.pdf
Del-Vallea V, Hernández-Muñozb P, Guardac A and Galottod M J 2005. Development of a cactusmucilage edible coating (Opuntia indica) and its application to extend strawberry (Fragaria ananassa) shelf-life. Food Chemistry 91:751-756.
Ding C K, Chachin K, Hamauzu Y, Ueda Y and Imahori Y 1998. Effects of storage temperatures on physiology and quality of loquat fruit. Postharvest Biology and Technology 14:309-315.
Ergun M and Satici F 2012. Use of aloe vera gel as biopreservative for ‘granny smith’ and ‘red chief’ apples. J Anim Plant Science 22:363-368.
Fatima T,  Bashir O,  Gani G,  Bhat  T A  and Jan N 2018. Nutritional and health benefits of apricots. International Journal of Unani and Integrative Medicine 2(2): 05-09.
García M A, Ventosa M, Díaz R, Falco S and Casariego A 2014. Effects of Aloe vera coating on postharvest quality of tomato Fruits, vol 69 p 117–126. DOI: 10.1051/fruits/2014001
Ghasemnezhad M, Shiri M A and Sanavi M 2010. Effect of chitosan coatings on some quality indices of apricot (Prunus armeniaca L) during cold storage. Caspian Journal of Environmental Sciences 8(1): 25-33.
Haciseferohullari H, Gezer I, Ozcan M M and Murat-Asma B 2007. Postharvest chemical and physical- mechanical propertis of some apricot varities cultivated in turkey. Journal of Food Engineering 79:364-373.
Hazrati S, Beyraghdar K A, Habibzadeh F, Tahmasebi S Z and Sadeghi A R 2017. Evaluation of Aloe vera gel as an alternative edible coating for Peach fruits during cold storage period. Journal of Gesunde Pflanzen 07-08| Original Article | Issue 3
Kader A A 2005. Increasing food availability by reducing postharvest losses of fresh produce. Acta Horticulture 682:2169-2176.
Kaur K, Dhillon WS, Mahajan BVC 2013. Effect of different packaging materials and storage intervals on physical and biochemical characteristics of pear. Journal of Food Science and Technology 50(1): 147-152.
Krishnan A S, Abhishek U, Nukasani S, Tiny E O, and Sunaila K 2017. Development of Aloevera Based Edible Coating. International Journal of pure Applied Bioscience 5 (5): 796-801
Kucuker E, Ozturk B, Celic S M, and Aksit H 2014. Preharvest spray application of methyl jasmonate plays an important role in fruit ripening, fruit quality and bioactive compounds of Japanes plum. Scientia Horticulturaea 176: 162-169
Ladaniya MS, 2011. Physico-chemical, respiratory and fungicide residue changes in wax coated mandarin fruit stored at chilling temperature with intermittent warming. Journal of Food Science Technology 48(2): 150–158.
Lara I, Garcı́a P and Vendrell M 2004. Modifications in cell wall composition after cold storage of calcium-treated strawberry (Fragaria ananassa Duch) fruit. Postharvest Biology and Technology 34:331-339.
Levy D and Poovaiah B W 1979. Effect of calcium infiltration of senescence of apples. Horticultural Science 14: 466-472.
Mali S and Grossmann M V E 2003. Effects of yam starch films on storability and quality of fresh strawberries (Fragaria ananassa). J Agric Food Chemistry 51:7005-7011.
Marpudi S L, Abirami L S S, Pushkala R and Srividya N 2011. Enhancement of storage life and quality maintenance of papaya fruits using Aloe vera based antimicrobial coating. Indian Journal of Biotechnology 10:83-89.
Martınez-Romero D, Alburquerque N, Valverde J M, Guillen F, Castillo S, Valero D and Morrano M 2005. Postharvest sweet cherry quality and safety maintenance by Aloe vera treatments: A new edible coating. Postharvest Biology and Technology 39:93-100.
Mehyar, G F and Han J H 2011. Active packaging for fresh-cut fruits and vegetables, in modified atmosphere packaging for fresh-cut fruits and vegetables. John Wiley and Sons, Inc, Hoboken, NJ, USA.
Misir J, Brishti F H, Hoque M M 2014. Aloe vera gel as a Novel edible coating for fresh fruits: A review. American Journal of Food Science and Technology 2(3): 93-97. DOI: 10.12691/ajfst-2-3-3 
Mohebbi M, Ansarifar E, Hasanpour N and Amiryousefi M R 2012. Suitability of aloe vera and gum tragacanth as edible coatings for extending the shelf life of button mushroom. Food Bioprocess Technology 5:3193-3202.
Pal S, Sahrawat A and Prakash D 2013. Aloe Vera: composition, processing and medicinal properties. International Journal Current Discover Innovation Research 2:106-122.
Park Y I and Jo T H 2006. Perspective of industrial application of Aloe vera. In: New Perspective on Aloe, Editors: Park Y I and Lee S K Springer Verlag, New York, USA, pp: 191-200.
Saltveit M E and Choi Y 2007. Aromatic- and dicarboxylates inhibit wound-induced phenolic accumulation in excised lettuce (Lactuca sativa L) leaf tissue. Postharvest Biology and Technology 46(3):222-229.
Shiri M A, Ghasemnezhad, M, Bakhshi, D and Saadatian, M 2011b. Effect of ascorbic acid on phenolic compounds and antioxidant activity of packaged fresh cut table grape. Electronic Journal of Environmental, Agricultural and Food Chemistry 10: 2506-2515.
Shiri M A, Ghasemnezhad, M, Fattahi Moghaddam, J and Ebrahimi, R 2016a. Effect of CaCl2 sprays at different fruit development stages on postharvest keeping quality of ‘Hayward’ kiwifruit. Journal of Food Processing and Preservation 40(4): 624–635.
Shiri M A, Ghasemnezhad, M, Fattahi Moghaddam, J and Ebrahimi, R 2016b. Enhancing and maintaining nutritional quality and bioactive compounds of ‘Hayward’ kiwifruit: Comparison the effectiveness of different CaCl2 spraying times. Journal of Food Processing and Preservation 40(5): 850-862.
Siddiq M, Butt M S and Greiby I 2012. Apricots Production, Processing, and Nutrition. In: Handbook of Fruits and Fruit Processing, Second Edition. Edited by Nirmal K Sinha, Jiwan S Sidhu, J´ozsef Barta, James S B Wu and M Pilar Cano 385-398 pp DOI: 10.1002/9781118352533.ch23
Soleimani Aghdam M, Motallebiazar A, Mostofi Y, Fattahi Moghaddam J and Ghasemnezhad M 2011. Methyl salicylate affects the quality of Hayward kiwifruits during storage at low temperature. Journal of Agricultural Science 3(2):149-156.
Tanada-Palmu S P and Grosso C R F 2005. Effect of edible wheat gluten-based films and coatings on refrigerated strawberry (fragaria. ananassa) quality. Postharvest Biology and Technology 36:199-208.
Valverde J M, Valero D, Martinez-Romero D, Guillen F, Castillo S and Serrano M 2005.  Novel edible coating based on Aloe vera gel to maintain table grape quality and safety. Agricultural and Food Chemistry 53:7807-7813.
 Wang L J, Chen S, Kong W F, Li S H and Archbold D D 2006. Salicylic acid pretreatment alleviates chilling injury and effects the antioxidant system and heat shock proteins of peaches during cold storage. Postharvest Biology and Technology 41:244-251.
Yahia, E M, Contreras-Padilla, M and Gonazalez-Aguilar G, 2001. Ascorbic acid content in relation to ascorbic acid oxidase activityand polyamine content in tomato and bell pepper fruits during development, maturation and senescence. Lebensmittel-Wissenschaftund-Technologie 34:452-457.
Yaman O and Bayoindirli L 2002. Effects of an edible coating and cold storage on shelf-life and quality of cherries. LWT-Food Science and Technology. Tec 35:146-150.
Yang F M, Li H M, Li, F, Xin Z H, Zhao L Y, Zheng Y H and Hu Q H 2010. Effect of Nano-Packing on Preservation Quality of Fresh Strawberry (Fragaria ananassa Duch, cv Fengxiang) during Storage at 4 °C. Journal of Food Science 75:236-240.
Zhao-liang L, Young-Bing, Y, Cheng-lian L, Zong-Xun C and Tsung-Hsum T 1998. Regulation of antioxidant enzymes by salycilic acid in cucumber leaves. Acta Botanica Sinica 40(4):356-36
Zokaee Khosroshahi M R and Esna-Ashari M 2008b. Effect of putrescine on shelf life and postharvest physiology of strawberry, apricot, peach and cherry. Journal of Science and Technology of Agriculture and Natural Resources 12(45): 219-230.
Zokaee Khosroshahi M R and Esna-Ashari, M 2008a. Effect of exogenous putrescine treatment on the quality and storage life of peach (Prunus persica L) fruit. Journal of Postharvest Technology and Innovation 1(3): 278-287.