title: Fungal decay and shelf life of oranges coated with chitosan and bergamot, thyme, and tea tree essential oils.
abstract: Chitosan coatings, containing or not essential oils (bergamot, thyme and tea tree oil), were applied to oranges (cv. Navel Powell). Antifungal effect was evaluated by applying coatings before and after inoculating the fruit with Penicillium italicum CECT 2294 (10(5) spores/mL), preventive and curative treatments, respectively. The effect of coatings on the quality parameters (acidity, pH, soluble solids, juice percentage, weight loss, firmness, color parameters, and respiration rate) was controlled for the different oranges samples throughout the cold storage time. Preventive antimicrobial treatments with coatings containing tea tree oil were the most effective with a reduction of the microbial growth (expressed as the percentage of infected samples) of 50%, as compared to the uncoated samples. The coatings did not lead to any relevant changes in the development of the sample quality parameters throughout the cold storage, except for a slightly reduced loss of both weight and firmness when the coatings contained bergamot oil.
  
  
  CONCLUSIONS
  Results of this study are a useful tool for the development of new environmental friendly and healthier commercial applications in the control of the main postharvest fungal decay of citrus fruits.
authors.affiliation: Departamento de Tecnología de Alimentos-Instituto de Ingeniería de Alimentos para el Desarrollo, Universidad Politécnica de Valencia, Valencia, Spain. mtchafer@tal.upv.es
authors.forename: M
authors.initials: M
authors.lastname: Cháfer
authors.forename: L
authors.initials: L
authors.lastname: Sánchez-González
authors.forename: Ch
authors.initials: Ch
authors.lastname: González-Martínez
authors.forename: A
authors.initials: A
authors.lastname: Chiralt
mesh_terms: D000935:Antifungal Agents / Q000494:pharmacology; D048271:Chitosan / Q000737:chemistry / Q000494:pharmacology*; D032084:Citrus sinensis / Q000382:microbiology*; D005506:Food Contamination / Q000517:prevention & control*; D005516:Food Microbiology; D005519:Food Preservation / Q000379:methods; D061353:Food Storage / Q000379:methods*; D005638:Fruit / Q000382:microbiology; D010407:Penicillium / Q000187:drug effects* / Q000254:growth & development; D010938:Plant Oils / Q000737:chemistry; D020947:Tea Tree Oil / Q000494:pharmacology*; D046930:Thymus Plant / Q000737:chemistry
chemical_list: D000935:Antifungal Agents; D010938:Plant Oils; C068336:bergamot oil; D020947:Tea Tree Oil; D048271:Chitosan