Commercial Date Research Articles

The genetics of fruit skin separation in date palm

The physical appearance of date palm (Phoenix dactylifera) fruit (dates) is important for its market value. Many date-producing countries experience significant financial losses due to the poor appearance of the fruit, skin separation or puffiness being a major reason. Previous research showed evidence linking the skin separation phenotype to environmental conditions. To investigate this further, a genome-wide association study was conducted using genome data from 199 samples collected from 14 countries. Here, we identified nine genetic loci associated with this phenotype and investigated genes in these regions that may contribute to the phenotype overall. Multiple genes in the associated regions have functional responses to growth regulators and are involved in cell wall development and modification. Analysis of gene expression data shows many are expressed during fruit development. We show that there are both environmental and genetic contributions to the fruit skin separation phenotype. Our results indicate that different date cultivars exhibit varying degrees of skin separation despite genetic similarities or differences. However, genetically different cultivars show extreme differences compared to the phenotype variation between genetically similar cultivars. We demonstrate that beyond environmental factors, genetics is a strong contributor to the most extreme skin separation in some cultivars. Identifying the genetic factors may help better understand the biology and pathways that lead to the environmental effects on skin separation and improve commercial date production. In conclusion, our key finding is that both environmental and genetic factors contribute to skin separation variation, and improvements in environmental factors alone cannot overcome the extreme level of variation observed in some cultivars.

Evaluation of Metaxenia Effects of Canary Island Palm Pollen on Commercial Date Palm Cultivars: Changes in Antioxidant Capacity and Phenolic and Flavonoid Contents of Fruits

Evaluation of Metaxenia Effects of Canary Island Palm Pollen on Commercial Date Palm Cultivars: Changes in Antioxidant Capacity and Phenolic and Flavonoid Contents of Fruits

Date palm-A gift for health and nutrition: national and international scenario

Date palm (Phoenix dactylifera L.), family Arecaceae or Palmae, is cultivated mostly in the arid regions of the world. The crop has played a significant role in the economy of these countries, provides nutritional security, besides helping to mitigate the adverse effects of desertification and climate change over centuries. Date palm personifies human civilization in the arid countries. It is estimated that there are 150 million date palms worldwide, and 75% of these in the Near East and North Africa region. According to the Food and Agriculture Organization (FAO) of the United Nations, the global production of dates has increased from just 1.8 million tons in 1962 to nearly 9.75 million tons in 2022. In India, commercial dates are cultivated mainly in the states of Gujarat and Rajasthan which are emerging as major producers of fresh dates. Besides, local and wild dates are abound across the country. Dates are consumed fresh or in dry form and considered a complete food, providing food and nutrition security through a wide range of essential nutrients that have beneficial effects on human health. This article presents an overview of dates on nutrition and human health besides giving an insight on propagation, production, protection, processing, marketing, and associated challenges plaguing the sector.

Seismic sensor-based management of the red palm weevil Rhynchophorus ferrugineus in date palm plantations.

The red palm weevil (RPW), Rhynchophorus ferrugineus, is one of the gravest threats to palm trees. The challenge in monitoring RPW primarily arises from the inconspicuous presence of larvae within the stem, which is often devoid of noticeable symptoms. This study looks at the use of seismic sensors in RPW management in commercial date palm plantations. It explores whether the data garnered from the sensor domain, and its translation into the health status of date palms, can reliably inform precise decision-making. Sensor and damage index values, as gauged by the Agrint IoTree seismic sensor, vividly mirrored RPW colonization activity. They also accurately portrayed the impact of three distinct insecticides: imidacloprid, phosphine, and entomopathogenic nematodes. The seismic values and damage index of healthy untreated palms strongly supported the decision to pursue tree recovery. Furthermore, this facilitated the computation of recovery pace discrepancies across the tested treatments, measured as the number of days required for tree restoration. Our findings underscore the practicality of employing seismic sensors, as exemplified by the IoTree system and its network services, to both monitor and assess palm tree health. Furthermore, it validates their efficacy in evaluating the efficiency of management strategies adopted against RPW, all grounded in a wealth of sensor-derived data. © 2023 Society of Chemical Industry.

Valorization and Chemical Constituents Assessments of Khalas Dates Fruit, Syrup and Pits

This study was conducted to contribute to the national approach to achieving food security in Saudi Arabia, which is one of the world's largest producer of dates. Studying the chemical properties of the most commercial date’s fruits cultivar in the eastern region will contribute to understanding to industrial potential Khalas dates. This is in addition to developing a method for extracting date syrup (DS) in a way that preserves as much nutritional properties as possible. Date fruits (DF) flesh and water mixture at a 1:3 ratio gave 18% total soluble solids (TSS) then concentrated to 70° Brix. The used date flesh to water ratio recaptured all sugars, acetic, butyric and propionic acids in DS. Sugars were the major components amounting 34.3 and 32.6% glucose and fructose, respectively. No crude or dietary fibers were present in DS due to their insolubility in water. In contrast, the major portion of minerals was recovered in DS. In the same way, 60% and 4.9% of the fat and protein respectively were recovered in the DS. It also notes that the main amino acid in DS is glutamic acid which represents 16.25 % of the total detected amino acids. In concentrated DS a total polyphenol (PP) tenor of 1448.65 mg/100 g gallic acid equivalent (GAE) was recovered. The presence of large amounts of PP in DS compared to whole dates can be explained by the use of high temperature DS extraction with vacuum evaporation of excess water. Crude and dietary fibers were the major components in date pits (DP) representing 24.1% and 56.1% respectively. Fat and sucrose were also present in a significant portion in DP showing 5.9% and 2.4%, respectively. Therefore, the results obtained will serve many food and nutrition industries as well as the pharmaceutical and therapeutic industries.

Immunomodulatory Effects of Spherical Date Seed Pills Industrially Fabricated on RAW264.7 Cells

Dates have been demonstrated to display a variety of bioactivities and are rich in polyphenols. In this work, we assessed the underlying immunomodulatory effects of date seed polyphenol extracts that had been industrially encapsulated and fabricated into commercial pills in RAW264.7 macrophages using the NF-κB and Nrf2 signaling pathways. The outcomes showed that in RAW264.7 cells, the date seed pills effectively stimulated nuclear translocation of NF-E2-related factor 2 (Nrf2) and NF-κB, along with downstream cytokines (IL-1β, TNF-α, IL-6, and IFN-γ), ROS ratios, and SOD activity. It is interesting to note that the encapsulated pills activated Nrf2 nuclear translocation more effectively than the non-encapsulated ones did. Additionally, pills at 50 µg mL-1 improved immunological responses, but pills at 1000 µg mL-1 prevented macrophages from becoming inflamed. These results showed that the immunomodulatory effects were differently impacted by commercial date seed pills, a finding which was related to the large-scale manufacturing of the pills and the incubation concentrations used. These results also shed light on a new trend of using food byproducts as an innovative supplement.

Evaluation of Different Insecticides Against Lesser Date Moth, Batrachedra amydraula Meyrick, 1916 (Lepidoptera: Batrachedridae) under Field Conditions

Evaluation of Different Insecticides Against Lesser Date Moth, Batrachedra amydraula Meyrick, 1916 (Lepidoptera: Batrachedridae) under Field Conditions

Common and novel metabolic pathways related ESTs were upregulated in three date palm cultivars to ameliorate drought stress

Date palm is an important staple crop in Saudi Arabia, and about 400 different date palm cultivars grown here, only 50–60 of them are used commercially. The most popular and commercially consumed cultivars of these are Khalas, Reziz, and Sheshi, which are also widely cultivated across the country. Date palm is high water-demanding crop in oasis agriculture, with an inherent ability to tolerate drought stress. However, the mechanisms by which it tolerates drought stress, especially at the transcriptomic level, are still elusive. This study appraised the physiological and molecular response of three commercial date palm cultivars Khalas, Reziz, and Sheshi at two different field capacities (FC; 100% and 25%) levels. At 25% FC (drought stress), leaf relative water content, chlorophyll, photosynthesis, stomatal conductance, and transpiration were significantly reduced. However, leaf intercellular CO2 concentration and water use efficiency increased under drought stress. In comparison to cvs. Khalas and Reziz, date palm cv. Sheshi showed less tolerance to drought stress. A total of 1118 drought-responsive expressed sequence tags (ESTs) were sequenced, 345 from Khalas, 391 from Reziz, and 382 from Sheshi and subjected to functional characterization, gene ontology classification, KEGG pathways elucidation, and enzyme codes dissemination. Three date palm cultivars deployed a multivariate approach to ameliorate drought stress by leveraging common and indigenous molecular, cellular, biological, structural, transcriptional and reproductive mechanisms. Approximately 50% of the annotated ESTs were related to photosynthesis regulation, photosynthetic structure, signal transduction, auxin biosynthesis, osmoregulation, stomatal conductance, protein synthesis/turnover, active transport of solutes, and cell structure modulation. Along with the annotated ESTs, ca. 45% of ESTs were novel. Conclusively, the study provides novel clues and opens the myriads of genetic resources to understand the fine-tuned drought amelioration mechanisms in date palm.

E&P Notes (February 2022)

E&P Notes (February 2022)

Economic injury level of date spider mite, Oligonychus afrasiaticus (Acari: Tetranychidae) on six commercial date cultivars

The date spider mite, Oligonychus afrasiaticus (McGregor) (Acari: Tetranychidae) is a destructive pest on date palm trees, causing high economic losses. Here, we investigated the relationship between population density of O. afrasiaticus and the extent of its injury level as well as the relation between rate of damage and date yield losses indices on six commercial date cultivars in five date palm growing provinces including Khuzestan (Sayer and Berhee), Hormozgan (Pyarum), Kerman (Mazafati), Bushehr (Kabkab), and Sistan and Baluchestan (Rabi) of Iran. The experiment was conducted in a complete randomized block design with five treatments and three replications. To this end, in each replication, four date clusters were selected from four different geographical directions, in each of them, 25 fruits were checked randomly to unveil the number of healthy and infested fruits. The sampling was repeated at seven-day intervals from late May to early September. Finally, the Norton model was used to estimate the economic injury level (EIL) under both biological and chemical control conditions. The highest value of EIL in 2019 was estimated for Sayer in the chemical control method (1827 Mite-day) and the lowest one was estimated for Pyarum in the biological control method (25.5 mite-day). Our results also revealed that the cost of biological control was significantly lower than chemical control. The highest and lowest rate of date injury (symptoms of the pest feeding) were observed on Berhee and Mazafati cultivars, respectively. Also, the highest and lowest rate of date loss were observed on Kabkab and Sayer cultivars, respectively. On the other hand, the cost of chemical control in both years was higher than that of biological control.

PCR-based SNP Markers for Sex Identification in Date Palm (Phoenix dactylifera L.) cv. KL1

The date palm (Phoenix dactylifera L.) is a valuable commercial plant in the Arecaceae family. It is a sweet, edible fruit containing a lot of nutrients including carbs, sugar, protein, and potassium. Maejo 36 or KL1 is a Thai date palm with excellent fresh fruit quality that is mostly grown in Thailand's northern and northeastern areas. The main issue with date palm farming is that there is no reliable way to discriminate between male and female seedlings prior to flowering, which takes 3 - 5 years after planting. An increase in the number of female date palm plants in commercial orchards may increase in date production and profitable investment. The present research aims to develop Single Nucleotide Polymorphisms (SNP) markers for the sex identification of date palm cv. KL1. The SNP markers were designed by analysis of nucleotide sequence difference from GenBank (accession number GL746268.1). The results revealed that SNP primers; PH02F - PdaNu01 (PdaNU02 or PdaNU03) - PdaNU05 used in multiplex PCR technique can precisely distinguish the sex of date palm by generating 2 different sizes of PCR-products in male plants, and only 1 size of PCR-product in female plants. This research indicates that SNP markers with multiplex-PCR technique are a high potential method for identifying the sex of date palm cv. KL1 may be used to increase female plants for cultivation at the seedling stage, which is highly beneficial for commercial date palm production. HIGHLIGHTS Date palm is currently an economic fruits crops in Thailand The sex of date palm can be identified by phenotype in flowering stage until five years after planting The amplicon patterns in male and female date palm generated by SNP marker are applicable to predict their genders at an early seedling stage The use of SNP marker is highly beneficial for commercial date palm production GRAPHICAL ABSTRACT

Development, characterization, and shelf-life of lactose-free artisan ice cream produced with different bases

This study aims to determine the commercial expiration date of and characterize lactose-free artisanal ice cream with dairy and non-dairy bases. We evaluated four ice cream with different bases at 0, 7, 14, and 21 d of storage. Their centesimal composition was analyzed for proteins, lipids, ashes, carbohydrates, and moisture. The physicochemical properties analyzed included overrun, density, titratable acidity, pH, water activity, and total soluble solids. The L*, a*, b*, C*, and h* parameters were used to evaluate color. Microbiological analyses included Salmonella sp., coagulase-positive Staphylococci, coliforms at 45° C, and mesophilic and psychrotrophic heterotrophic bacteria. Sensory analysis analyzed the consumer profile and measured their acceptance and intent to purchase the samples, with the zero-lactose milk base obtaining the best nutritional values, the best sensory characteristics, and more than 70% intent to purchase, indicating that it is the most accepted formulation. All treatments had a shelf life of 21 d at −18° C.

A preliminary study on mycobiota and ochratoxin a contamination in commercial palm dates (Phoenix dactylifera).

The occurrence of mycotoxins and mycotoxigenic fungi in palm dates has not been thoroughly documented. The aims of the present study were to identify the mycobiota present in commercial date samples (n = 19), to determine the ability of the isolated fungi to produce mycotoxins, and to determine and quantify the presence of OTA in date fruits. The majority of products originated from Tunisia (n = 14) and Algeria (n = 3). The dominant fungal species were Aspergillus niger, Aspergillus tubingensis and Aspergillus flavus which were most frequently found in premium quality and organic produce, produced without chemical preservatives. OTA was found in only one sample at a concentration of 0.75µg/kg, as determined by HPLC with fluorescence detection. Although this preliminary study did not find elevated levels of OTA, its presence in one out of 19 samples indicates that palm dates for human consumption require continuous and stringent control, in order to prevent contaminated produce from entering the market.

Commercial sex work among university students: a case study of four public universities in Ghana

BackgroundDespite its criminalization in Ghana, commercial sex work dates back to ancient societies and occurs in various forms within communities. The authors examined commercial sex work in selected public Universities in Ghana to inform policy and program decisions for safer sex at the universities in Ghana.MethodsThe study was an exploratory-mixed-method design. Respondents were identified using purposive and snowballing techniques while semi-structured questionnaires and in-depth interviews were used for data collection between 2017and 2019. Quantitative data were analyzed using Statistical Package for Social Sciences version 23 and qualitative data analyzed thematically.ResultsFindings show that there is a proliferation of commercial sex work on university campuses in Ghana for financial, material, and emotional gains. Student sex workers have devised various strategies to combine academic work and sex work. Prospective customers are solicited by hanging out in drinking bars and nightclubs in and around university campuses at night and/or leaving contact details with pimps to be contacted for services. Brothels are also springing up in and around the university campuses in the form of movie houses and student sex workers convert their hostel rooms into brothels. Price negotiation is based on the environment, duration, the sex workers' perceived safety of the sexual act, customer's preferences for styles, and positions adopted for sex.ConclusionThere is a need for further studies in this area and a multi-sectoral approach for appropriate policy and program interventions to regulate the practice on campus.

Application of SSR Markers for Genetic Segregation of Some Commercial Date Palm Cultivars

Application of SSR Markers for Genetic Segregation of Some Commercial Date Palm Cultivars

Valorization of date palm biodiversity: physico‐chemical composition, phenolic profile, antioxidant activity, and sensory evaluation of date pastes

This work is a contribution to the valorization of the Algerian date palm agrobiodiversity by studying some nutraceutical properties of date pastes from less important cultivars. A commercial date paste, prepared from Ghars variety, was compared to two date pastes prepared from the secondary cultivars Tamjouhert and Tazarzeit. Physico-chemical characteristics, phenolic profile (HPLC-DAD), and antioxidant activity were assessed for both date fruits and pastes. The sensory evaluation of date pastes was conducted through triangular, ranking, and hedonic tests. The results revealed that the transformation of date fruits into pastes caused a significant increase in phenolic content and antioxidant capacity, a decrease in sugar content in parallel with the appearance of hydroxymethylfurfural and furfural. The elaborated date pastes were characterized by a relatively low level of sugar (72.17–74.14 mg/100 g), a high amount of phenolic compounds (> 290 mg/kg DW), and a potent antioxidant activity. Seventeen phenolic compounds were identified by HPLC with global quantities for date fruits of 113 (Tamjouhert cv.) and 100 mg/kg DW (Tazarzeit cv.) and that were increased twofold after transformation to date pastes. The sensory analysis for the obtained date pastes indicated high scores of acceptability in comparison with the commercial paste. The obtained results showed clearly that these secondary cultivars possess several potentialities; this may help to valorize them by turning a part of their production into several added-value products such as date past.

Determination of economic injury level of date palm lesser moth, Batrachedra amydraula (Lepidoptera: Batrachedridae) on six commercial date cultivars in Iran

شب پرة کوچک خرما Batrachedra amydraula Meyrick (Lepidoptera: Batrachedridae) و سایر کرم ­های میوه­ خوار خرما از مهم­ترین آفات میوة خرما می ­باشند که موجب خشک شدن و ریزش خرما می­شوند. در این پژوهش ارتباط بین تراکم جمعیت کرم میوه خوار خرما و میزان آسیب ناشی از آن و کاهش شاخص ­های عملکرد خرما روی شش رقم تجاری نخل خرما در استان­ های خوزستان، بوشهر، هرمزگان، کرمان، و سیستان و بلوچستان طی سال­های 1396 و 1397 بررسی شد. هزینه مدیریت تولید در دو حالت کاربرد کنترل شیمیایی و بیولوژیک و قیمت محصول در هر منطقه بر اساس پیش بینی میانگین شش ماهه محاسبه شد. نمونه برداری­ها از انتهای اردیبهشت تا اوایل شهریور به فاصله هر 10 روز یک بار انجام شد. از هر درخت چهار خوشه از چهار جهت مختلف جغرافیایی درخت انتخاب و از هر خوشه، تعداد 25 عدد میوه (از نظر سالم و آلوده بودن) مورد بررسی قرار گرفت. در نهایت از مدل نورتون برای محاسبه EIL در شرایط کنترل بیولوژیک و کنترل شیمیایی استفاده شد. بر اساس نتایج، هزینه کنترل بیولوژیک کمتر از کنترل شیمیایی بود. بالاترین هزینه در هر دو روش مربوط به هزینه خرید مواد کنترل کننده بود. بالاترین میزان آسیب وارده به محصول (علائم تغذیه) در اثر واحد جمعیت آفت مربوط به رقم مضافتی و کمترین آن مربوط به رقم کبکاب بود. همچنین بالاترین میزان خسارت محصول در اثر واحد آسیب (زیان ناشی از تغذیه) آفت مربوط به رقم ربی و کمترین آن در رقم سایر مشاهده شد. در کلیه ارقام مورد مطالعه، سطح زیان اقتصادی در سال 1396 کمتر از سال 1397 در هر دو روش کنترل شیمیایی و بیولوژیک بود. از طرفی هزینه در روش کنترل بیولوژیکی در هر دو سال و در کلیه ارقام مورد مطالعه پایین­ تر از روش کنترل شیمیایی بود. بالاترین سطح زیان اقتصادی در سال 1397 مربوطه به رقم سایر و در روش کنترل بیولوژیک (1/ 1546 لارو-روز) و کمترین آن مربوط به رقم ربی و در روش کنترل شیمیایی (81/13 لارو-روز) بود.

Improving 'Piyarom' date palm fruit quality with fruit thinning and bunch covering treatments

‘Piyarom’ dates are one of the most important commercial date cultivars grown in Iran but fruit quality and postharvest losses can be a problem. Thinning and the use of bunch covers were examined to improve the date fruit quality. Three different levels of fruit thinning were applied (without thinning, removal of one third of total strands from terminal tips during pollination and removal of one third of terminal tips of central strands in early kimri). In addition, the effects of bunch covers were assessed with the use of polyethylene bunch covers that were applied in the early stages of Khalal. The results showed that bunch covering reduced the lightness of the fruit but increased bunch weight, fruit length, total antioxidant activity and total phenolic compounds compared to the control. Thinning during pollination increased the weight of the fruit compared to the control. The thinning during Kimri stage increased the percentage of Tamar and ascorbic acid content. These results show that the use of covers play a positive role in increasing quality and bunch weight and thinning at both pollination and Kimri ripening stage is recommended to produce high quality ‘Piyarom’ dates.

Design, development, and performance evaluation of a ducted fan date palm (Phoenix dactylifera L.) pollinator

Date palm is a dioecious tree that bearing male and female inflorescence on separate trees. Although pollination of date palm occurs naturally, in order to guarantee productivity, the artificial pollination can be carried out in commercial date farms. Up to now, an efficient mechanical pollinator has not been developed, and pollination is still carried out manually in most date farms. In this regard, an ultra-light, efficient electrical date palm pollinator was designed and developed consists of a ducted fan, a body and container composed of light polyethylene terephthalate (PET), and a 6.5 m long boom, which was made from carbon fiber. The apparatus overall weight was less than 2 kg, which makes the apparatus as a portable machine to sprinkle pollen/pollen-flour blend. The container had the capacity of approximately 70 g pollen, which could pollinate up to 140 trees in each charge. The pollinator performance was evaluated on the Mazafati cultivar by the aid of a complete randomized designed experiment with five pollinated treatments (traditional, 0.5 g pollen, 2.5 g pollen, 5.5 g pollen-flour blend, and 2.5 g pollen with no repetition) and a non-pollinated treatment. Furthermore, the pollination and fruit setting efficiencies, pollen consumption index (fruits/g pollen), and the airflow characteristics of the pollinator were determined. Therefore, a model was introduced to determine the required pollen or blend (pollen-flour) mass flow rate as a function of discharged air velocity. According to findings, no significant difference was noted regarding the pollination and fruit setting efficiencies among five pollination treatments (p-value<0.05). Furthermore, the treatments with higher fruit settings had lower fruit weight, while no significant difference was noted in seed weight among all treatments (p-value<0.05). However, the mean fruit weight associated with 0.5 g pollen treatment was significantly greater than other pollinated treatments. Generally speaking, the introduced pollinator could properly work as a replacement for the traditional method.

Cost-Benefit Analysis of POME Biogas Power Plant: Case Study of PLTBg Suka Damai

Palm Oil Mill Effluent (POME) is a byproduct of processing fresh palm fruit bunches into crude palm oil (CPO) which has negative externalities in the form of gas containing methane, carbon dioxide and other greenhouse gases (GHG) which is very dangerous for sustainability environment. The use of pome as feedstocks for biogas power plants (PLTBg) changes the negative externalities of pome into positive externalities such as increased electrification in the area around the palm oil mill (PKS) and also good for environmental sustainability. PLTBg Suka Damai with a capacity of 2.4 Mw is planned to reach the Commercial Operating Date (COD) in 2019, the financial calculation has a cost-benefit ratio of 1.19, percentage of Internal Rate of Return (IRR) of 12.84%, percentage of weighted cost of capital (WACC) 10% and a Net Present Value (NPV) of Rp 21,275,609,209.00. Using the cost-benefit analysis method, the authors calculate the positive externalities generated by PLTBg Suka Damai by comparing the value of benefits into three (3) alternative scenarios. The scenario I add the social cost of carbon (SCOC) as additional benefits; scenario II adds carbon credit income parameters from the REDD+ scheme; scenario III only utilizes the benefits of electricity sales and the electrification without adding additional benefits. Comprehending all the results, the first scenario with SCOC is the most optimize scenario for it provides far greater benefits to the community, far greater than the financial revenue received by the PLTBg itself.