Abstract
The study involved an examination of the antifungal activity on red peppers of pullulan coating (P) and pullulan coating containing either water-ethanol (P + eEMF) or ethanol extract of meadowsweet flowers (P + eEMF). Pullulan was obtained from a culture of Aureobasidium pullulans B-1 mutant. Both non-inoculated peppers and those artificially inoculated with Rhizopus arrhizus were coated and incubated at 24 °C for 5 days. The intensity of the decay caused by Rhizopus arrhizus in the peppers with P and P + eEMF coatings was nearly 3-fold lower, and in the case of P + weEMF 5-fold lower, than that observed in the control peppers. Additionally, the P + weEMF coating decreased, almost two-fold the severity of pepper decay compared to other samples. The influence of coating of pepper postharvest quality was examined after 30 days of storage at 6 °C and 70%–75% RH. All coatings formed a thin and well-attached additional layer of an intensified gloss. During storage, color, total soluble solid content and weight loss of coated peppers were subject to lower changes in comparison with uncoated ones. The results indicate the possibility of the application of pullulan coatings containing MFEs as an alternative to the chemical fungicides used to combat pepper postharvest diseases.
Highlights
Some biological macromolecules, including polysaccharides, e.g., starches, alginates, celluloses, chitosan and pullulan, are characterized by good coat-forming properties [1,2,3]
After 5 days of incubation at 24 °C, it was observed that the coatings applied to peppers limited considerably the incidence of decay in peppers compared to uncoated samples (Figure 1)
It may be concluded from our study that the incidence of decay in peppers with pullulan and P + eEMF coatings was about 3-fold lower, and about 5-fold lower in the case of P + weEMF coating compared to the control peppers
Summary
Some biological macromolecules, including polysaccharides, e.g., starches, alginates, celluloses, chitosan and pullulan, are characterized by good coat-forming properties [1,2,3]. An undoubted advantage of such edible coatings is the limited amount of antimicrobial agents transferred to the food, due to their slow release from the coating matrix. These compounds mainly act on the surface of coated products, i.e., at the site of the highest microbiological food contamination. Pullulan is an exopolysaccharide produced aerobically by the fungus Aureobasidium pullulans. It is a non-toxic, non-mutagenic, non-carcinogenic, edible as well as biodegradable polymer with excellent film-forming properties. Pullulan films can act as carriers for colors, flavors and other nutritional or antimicrobial additives [12,13]
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