Abstract
Post-harvest diseases of fruit and vegetables have to be controlled because of the high added value of commodities and the great economic loss related to spoilage. Synthetic fungicides are the first choice worldwide to control post-harvest diseases of fruit and vegetables. However, several problems and constraints related to their use have forced scientists to develop alternatives control means to prevent post-harvest diseases. Physical and biological means, resistance inducers, and GRAS (generally recognized as safe) compounds are the most important alternatives used during the last 20 years. Recently, nanomaterial treatments have demonstrated promising results and they are being investigated to reduce the utilization of synthetic fungicides to control post-harvest rot in fruit and vegetables. The collective information in this review article covers a wide range of nanomaterials used to control post-harvest decays related to each selected fruit crop including grape, citrus, banana, apple, mango, peach, and nectarine. Other examples also used are apricot, guava, avocado, papaya, dragon, pear, longan, loquat, jujubes, and pomegranate fruits.
Highlights
Post-harvest diseases of fruit and vegetables are commonly caused by several plant pathogenic microorganisms, including fungi and bacteria, leading to serious losses during storage and transportation
The aforementioned losses can be divided as follows: 18% losses come from animal pests; 16% due to microbial diseases in which 70%–80% of these losses are caused by plant pathogenic fungi; and 34% are due to weeds [5]
The main post-harvest diseases of citrus can be divided into two groups based on their initial infections: (i) diseases from field infection such as Alternaria rot, Brown rot, Phomopsis and Diplodia stem-end rot, and Anthracnose; and (ii) diseases due to post-harvest infection such as Penicillium decays, Aspergillus, Rhizopus, Sour rot, and Fusarium decays [47]
Summary
Post-harvest diseases of fruit and vegetables are commonly caused by several plant pathogenic microorganisms, including fungi and bacteria, leading to serious losses during storage and transportation. Nanotechnology, as a new approach, has been utilized in numerous applications in assorted fields of science including agriculture. The exceptional properties of nanomaterials make them a practical choice for sustainable horticulture in general and in particular post-harvest diseases of fruit and vegetable at the scientific level and industry stage [1]
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