Abstract
Fresh loquat (Eriobotrya japonica Lindl.) fruits easily lose their marketability because of fungal spoilage, browning, and weight loss after harvest. The use of essential oils as postharvest treatment is a talented alternative to fungicides mainly because of their ability to reduce respiration and transpiration of the fresh fruits during storage. However, the postharvest studies with the volatiles of essential oils are limited. The present study was conducted to determine the effectiveness of volatile essential oils of myrtle (Myrtus communis L.) leaves for preserving the postharvest storability of loquat fruits. Test fruits of the present study were exposed to 5 different treatments, which are (i) water vapor (2 min), (ii) myrtle leaves (3% w/w), (iii) myrtle leaf vapor (2 min), (iv) myrtle leaf vapor (10 min), and (v) untreated control. A total of 30 compounds were isolated from the essential oil, and the three highest amounts of compounds were determined as eucalyptol (39.38%), α-pinene (24.98%), and linalool (8.18%). Exposure to myrtle leaves (3% w/w) and myrtle leaf vapor (2 min) was also noted to provide higher efficacy for reducing the weight loss, decay incidence, and browning index.
Highlights
Loquat (Eriobotrya japonica Lindl.) is a subtropical plant which was originated from south-central China
Overall results about the quality parameters of untreated control fruits are in accordance with the findings of Song et al [9]. e dominant chemical compounds of the volatile essential oils were found to be te eucalyptol, α-pinene, and linalool for the myrtle leaves in the present study
In a most similar study, the essential oil vapors of M. communis L. were tested against Penicillium digitatum in in vitro conditions, and the results showed that it elapsed time between the fungal inoculum and vapor contact [45]
Summary
Loquat (Eriobotrya japonica Lindl.) is a subtropical plant which was originated from south-central China. It belongs to the Rosaceae family [1] and widely adapted to many regions of the world, including South Africa, the United States of America, Asia, and Mediterranean countries [2]. One of the main disadvantages of loquat fruits for marketing is the short storability of the fruits due to enzymatic browning, weight loss, and pathogenic decay [5]. Weight loss and pathogenic decay were reported to be controlled by storing the fruits at low temperatures (5 to 7°C). E main symptoms of chilling injury at the loquat fruits are the internal and external browning together with increased fruit firmness and reduced juice content. Heat treatment [7] and application of edible coatings [8,9,10] have been reported to reduce fruit browning
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