Abstract
The aim of this study was to evaluate the effect of essential oil (EO) from fresh leaves of Mentha piperita L. on the conservation of mango puree during storage. The results of physicochemical characterization of mango puree underlined its high nutritional potential, with carbohydrates, carotenoids and vitamin C contents of 9.5±0.4%, 20.05±0.03 mg/100g and 21.03±0.05 mg/100g respectively. Microbiological analyses revealed that Aspergillus and Mucor were the most common genera of fungi identified from mango puree in Benin by using a taxonomic schemes primarily based on morphological characters of mycelium and conidia. The isolated fungi include Aspergillus parasiticus, A. versicolor and Mucor spp. Antifungal assay, performed by the agar diffusion assay, indicated that essential oil exhibited high antifungal activity against the growth of fungi. The minimal inhibitory concentration (MIC) of the essential oil was found to be 2.0 μL.mL-1for A. parasiticus and A. versicolor; and 1.0 μL.mL-1 for Mucor spp. The Minimal Fungicide Concentration (MFC)was recorded to be 2.5 μL.mL-1 for A. parasiticus and A. versicolor; and 1.5 μL.mL-1 for Mucor spp. Chemical analysis by GC/MS of the oil led to the identification of 15 components, characterized by menthol (46.7%), neomenthol (8.28%) and 1.8-cinéole (6.49%) as major components. Results obtained during the evaluation of the physicochemical characteristics of the mango puree stored by adding EO, indicated a significant decrease in the pH, carotenoids and vitamin C contents. However, with EO concentration of 2.5 μL.mL-1, the pH of stored mango puree was 6.4±0.7 after 15 days of preservation, with a high carotenoids and vitamin C contents of 19.02±0.07 mg/100g and 21.01±0.03 mg/100g. The EO of Mentha piperita L., with high antimicrobial property, offers a novel approach to the management of fruits derivate products during storage.
Highlights
For a long times, the problems encountered in Africa by producers during the post-harvest period of agricultural products have been neglected, because they were combined with those related to production
Chemical analysis by GC and Gas chromatography–mass spectrometry (GC-MS) analysis of essential oil (EO) enabled the identification of 15 components, (Table 1) representing 94.2 % of the EO
The results obtained during storage tests of mango puree with the EO of Mentha piperita L. at different concentrations (Table 4) indicated a strong antimicrobial activity of the EO against the spoilage flora
Summary
The problems encountered in Africa by producers during the post-harvest period of agricultural products have been neglected, because they were combined with those related to production. The conservation of fruit products is a serious problem because of the rapid growth of micro-organisms. To overcome this problem, unspecified heat treatments or antimicrobials products from chemical synthesis are often used. The nutritional value of fruit derivate products are often modified by heat treatments, and the application in high concentrations of synthetic chemicals products in food preservation, increases the risk of toxic residues in food products (Hammer et al, 1999). Due to the increasing sensitivity of consumers to this residual pollution and the toxic effects of many antimicrobials from chemical synthesis, the importance of using natural products becomes necessary (Bankole, 1997). The restriction imposed by the food industry and regulatory agencies on the use of some synthetic food additives has led to a renewed interest in the search for alternatives, such as natural compounds, (Hammer et al, 1999)
Sign-in/Register to view highlights & summary Sign-in/Register to access full text options 
Free) 
Talk to us
Join us for a 30 min session where you can share your feedback and ask us any queries you have
Schedule a call
