Aims: To investigate the effects of trans‐2‐hexenal on blue mould disease, patulin content and fruit quality in ‘Conference’ pears.
Methods and Results: Fruits, wounded and inoculated with Penicillium expansum or non‐inoculated, were exposed to trans‐2‐hexenal vapour treatment (12·5 μl l−1) at 20°C. A greater reduction of decay was obtained by treatment application 24 or 48 h after inoculation, in contrast trans‐2‐hexenal application 2 h after inoculation was ineffective. Fruit storage temperature (−1°C) after treatment did not affect the antifungal activity. Although 2‐h exposure to trans‐2‐hexenal was effective in reducing blue mould, an exposure of at least 8 h was required to reduce fruit patulin content. Treatments did not affect fruit physical–chemical characteristics. After 6 days at 20°C following exposure, trans‐2‐hexenal residue in treated fruits was less than the natural content of the compound in unripe fruits.
Conclusions: trans‐2‐Hexenal treatment is effective in the reduction of blue mould infections and patulin content in Conference pears when applied 24–48 h after pathogen inoculation.
Significance and Impact of the Study: trans‐2‐Hexenal could be a natural alternative to fungicides in the control of P. expansum infections. Further work is needed to study the methods and conditions avoiding the persistence of off‐odours and off‐flavours in pears after their exposure to trans‐2‐hexenal vapours.
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