Manuscript Title:

POST HARVEST APPLICATION OF ALOE VERA GEL COUPLED WITH NEEM (AZADIRACHTA INDICA) LEAF EXTRACT MAINTAINS FRESH-CUT PEACH FRUIT QUALITY AND SHELF STORAGE STABILITY

Author:

MAJID KHAN, WASEEM AHMED, AFTAB JAMAL, MUHAMMAD SHAFIQUE KHALID, MUHAMMAD FARHAN SAEED, ADIL MIHOUB, SOHAIL AHMAD, SAMINA KHALID, MADIHA BUTT​

DOI Number:

DOI:10.17605/OSF.IO/58TMW

Published : 2022-03-10

About the author(s)

1. MAJID KHAN - Department of Horticulture, The University of Haripur, (22620), Pakistan.
2. WASEEM AHMED - Department of Horticulture, The University of Haripur, (22620), Pakistan.
3. AFTAB JAMAL - Department of Soil and Environmental Sciences, Faculty of Crop Production Sciences, The University of Agriculture, Peshawar, (25130), Pakistan.
4. MUHAMMAD SHAFIQUE KHALID - Department of Environmental Sciences, COMSATS University, Islamabad, (61100) Vehari Campus, Pakistan.
5. MUHAMMAD FARHAN SAEED - Department of Environmental Sciences, COMSATS University, Islamabad, (61100) Vehari Campus, Pakistan.
6. ADIL MIHOUB - Center for Scientific and Technical Research on Arid Regions, Biophysical Environment Station, Touggourt 30240, Algeria.
7. SOHAIL AHMAD - Department of Horticulture, The University of Haripur, (22620), Pakistan.
8. SAMINA KHALID - Department of Environmental Sciences, COMSATS University, Islamabad, (61100) Vehari Campus, Pakistan.
9. MADIHA BUTT​ - Department of Horticulture, Ghazi University, Dera Ghazi Khan, Pakistan.

Full Text : PDF

Abstract

Recent advances in edible coatings (EC) are helpful in extending shelf life, resolving fruit safety issues, and maintaining quality of fresh fruits. There is dire need to evaluate the cost effective and environmental friendly natural plant extracts for extending the shelf life of fresh-cut fruits. Aloe vera gel (AVG) is one of the best edibles and biologically safe preservative coatings for various foods. However, the effect of Aloe vera gel coating coupled with neem (Azadirachta indica) leaf extract (NLE) on post-harvest qualitative attributes of peach fruit during shelf storage remains unknown. For this purpose, peach fruits (cv. Indian blood) were coated with different treatments of AVG and NLE alone and in combination to evaluated for post-harvest shelf-life extension and changes in physiological and biochemical attributes when stored at ambient conditions (25 ◦C ± 2) for nine days. The results revealed that peach fruits when treated with AVG (100 ml L -1 ) coupled with NLE (100 ml L-1 ) maintained good status of total soluble solids (TSS) concentrations while kept a high level of titratable acidity (TA) as compared with the control treatment on final day of storage. Moreover, same treatment inhibited the loss of total phenolic content (TPC) of peach fruit and induced a significant increase in the activities of peroxidase dismutase (POD), superoxide dismutase (SOD), and catalase (CAT) enzymes on final day of storage. It is concluded that, AVG (100 ml L-1 ) coupled with NLE (100 ml L-1 ) could be a promising approach for enhancing peach fruits quality at shelf.


Keywords

Chemical-free edible coating; Aloe vera; Neem leaf extract; Secondary metabolites; Anti-oxidative activity; Storage period; Peach