Anatomical characterization of Passiflora cincinnata Mast. fruit subjected to refrigeration

Carolina Rodrigues Victor De Carvalho,Ana Maria Mapeli,Andreia Barroncas De Oliveira

doi:10.1590/0100-29452021698

Carolina Rodrigues Victor De Carvalho, Ana Maria Mapeli + Show 1 more

Open Access

https://doi.org/10.1590/0100-29452021698

Copy DOI

Abstract

Abstract Passiflora cincinnata is a species of wild passion fruit whose fruit has potential for use by the food industry. In this context, an anatomical study of the pericarp may help in understanding the changes which occur during the postharvest period. The objective of this work was to anatomically characterize the P. cincinnata pericarp, focusing on the structural changes which occur during refrigerated storage. The selected fruits were kept in net-like packaging at 5°C and evaluated every 15 days for a period of 90 days. Pericarp samples were hand cut on these dates for structural description and to detect starch, phenolic compounds, alkaloids, polysaccharides, proteins, lipids and lignin through histochemical tests. Other samples were analyzed by scanning electron microscope. The fruit is composed of three anatomically distinct regions: exocarp, mesocarp and endocarp. The mesocarp stands out for the presence of sclerified cells and the lax parenchyma, which increased its number of layers during the evaluated period. Idioblasts with prismatic crystals, drusen, silica crystals and raphides were identified, but the amounts reduced over time. This reduction and enlargement of the lax parenchyma were the main changes observed in the postharvest period of P. cincinnata pericarps.

Highlights

Passiflora L. is the largest genus in the Passifloraceae family (GURSKI, 2015)
This genus is known to group species with economic importance, since some are grown as ornamental plants (DHAWAN et al, 2004; PEIXOTO, 2005), while others are known for their pharmacological properties (ZERAIK et al, 2010; COSTA, 2013; GAZOLA, 2014; ESTEVAM et al, 2017) or for their use in the food industry (OLIVEIRA et al, 2002; NASCIMENTO et al, 2013; ZERAIK et al, 2010; COSTA, 2013; SOUZA et al, 2008)
The objective of this work was to anatomically characterize P. cincinnata pericarp stored under refrigeration, focusing on structural changes which occur during its post-harvest period

Summary

Introduction

It is estimated that it has more than 500 species (ARAÚJO et al, 2008; MONTERO et al, 2016), distributed in tropical and subtropical regions (GURSKI, 2015) This genus is known to group species with economic importance, since some are grown as ornamental plants (DHAWAN et al, 2004; PEIXOTO, 2005), while others are known for their pharmacological properties (ZERAIK et al, 2010; COSTA, 2013; GAZOLA, 2014; ESTEVAM et al, 2017) or for their use in the food industry (OLIVEIRA et al, 2002; NASCIMENTO et al, 2013; ZERAIK et al, 2010; COSTA, 2013; SOUZA et al, 2008). It presents pale pink to violet color and blue violet flowers, corolla with a purple base, lighter bands in the middle and blue-violet in the upper portion (ARAÚJO, 2007; GURSKI, 2015); glabrous ovary and berry type fruit, globose, dark green; containing ovate, cross-linked, foveolated seeds (NUNES, 2002) and with light yellow aryl (GURSKI, 2015)

Objectives

Methods

Results