The use of biodegradable coatings to conserve fruits and vegetables stands out in the food industry. This study aims to evaluate the postharvest quality of papaya Formosa 'Tainung 01' submitted to different coating formulations, to establish the one that best maintains the postharvest quality. The fruits, distributed in a completely randomized design, received the coatings composed of aqueous solution of agar and pomegranate seed oil in the following compositions (with 6 treatments and 5 replicates): T1: 0.5% agar and 0.1 mL/L oil; T2: 1.0% agar and 0.2 mL/L oil; T3: 1.5% agar and 0.3 mL/L oil; T4: 2.0% agar and 0.4 mL/L of oil; T5: 2.5% of agar and 0.5 mL/L of oil; and T6: Control, uncoated. The experiment lasted ten days packing at 17.5 ± 0.6 °C and 55 ± 3, 2% RH. T4 provided better conservation of the quality attributes in papaya. Fruits in this treatment showed higher vitamin C content, higher soluble solids and total sugars, and lower titratable acidity, important characteristics for product acceptance. Besides, T4 better conserved the green (external) color of the fruits, while fruits submitted to the other treatments acquired a yellowish coloration.Practical Application: Edible coating based on agar and pomegranate seed oil for postharvest conservation.

Aims: Biodegradable technologies comprise an innovative tool in the post-harvest treatment of fruits. They can maintain the food quality without harming consumer health and environment. This study tests the efficiency of microalgae as a coating for bananas of the 'Prata Anã' cultivar.

Seedlings production is one of the most important stages of the production system and directly influences the performance of the plant in the field. In this sense, the present work aims to evaluate the use of biomass doses of Spirulina platensis and Scenedesmus sp. via root system on the production of yellow passion fruit seedlings. A greenhouse experiment was carried out using a randomized block design in a 2 × 5 factorial scheme (Spirulina platensis and Scenedesmus sp., at the doses 0.0%, 0.2%, 0.4%, 0.8 % and 1% m/v), with four blocks and two experimental units per plot. At 60 days, leaf number, total seedling length, shoot diameter, root system length, shoot length, shoot and root fresh mass, dry mass, root dry mass and total chlorophyll were measured. Spirulina platensis showed superior performance compared to Scenedesmus sp., for the variables stem diameter, shoot length, fresh shoot mass, fresh root mass, dry shoot mass and root dry mass. The doses influenced the number of leaves, root fresh mass, root dry mass, shoot length and fresh shoot mass significantly. The best dose of microalga applied was 0.8% in passion fruit seedlings at 60 days.

This work assesses the influence of edible coating with nutraceutical properties on post-harvest conservation of guavas 'Paluma'. The experiment comprised of a completely randomized design with four replicates and three fruits per plot. Six treatments were applied combining different concentrations of agar and pomegranate seed oil (PS): T1: 1% agar and 0.1 mL/L PS oil; T2: 2% agar and 0.2 mL L-1 PS oil; T3: 3% agar and 0.3 mL L-1 PS oil; T4: 4% agar and 0.4 mL L-1 oil; T5: 5% agar and 0.5 mL L-1 oil; and T6: control (fruits without coating). After the immersion in treatment solutions, the guavas remained stored in an air-conditioned room for ten days at 10 °C and 40% RH. Fruits without coating (control) ripened faster than coated ones, so the treatments preserved fruit coloration. The treatments T4 and T5 provided the best preservation of peel color, suggesting slower ripening and maintenance of fruit quality, as their colors tended to green and opaque. The firmness of fruits without coating was decreased by 35.15% concerning the coated ones. Treatments T4 and T5 had the lowest loss of fresh mass. On the other hand, T5 showed the lowest soluble solids contents (SS)(13.46%). Titratable acidity (TA), SS/TA ratio, total sugars, and carotenoids were not affected by treatments. The edible coating with 4% of agar plus 0.4 mL L-1 of pomegranate seed oil promoted the best quality traits for the post-harvest preservation of the guavas 'Paluma'.

Aims: Pomegranate has been used since ancient times as a universal therapeutic agent due to the presence of biologically active ingredients in different parts of the plant. Pomegranate seed oil is considered a nutraceutical because of its rich composition. Therefore, this work aimed to study the main changes in the composition of fatty acids and antioxidant activity of pomegranate seed oil (cv. Molar) in different stages of fruit development. Study design: Completely randomized design. The treatments were the ages (60, 70, 80, 90 and 100 days), counted from the beginning of the anthesis. For each harvest a random sampling of five fruits was used for each repetition, and four replications per stage of fruit development were performed totaling 20 fruits per treatment. Place and Duration of Study: The research was carried out in partnership with the farm Águas de Tamanduá, located in Várzeas de Sousa, PB, (longitude 38°13'41" and latitude 06°45'33"). Methodology: The characterization of the phenological phases of pomegranate (Molar cv.) development was carried out at the beginning of the orchard. Vigorous and healthy adult plants were selected. Hermaphrodite flowers were marked, evenly distributed in the area, with colored tape resistant to high temperature, sunshine, winds and rains. The marking of the flowers occurred in the early hours of the morning, and at the time of the marking, thinning of flowers was carried out on branches that had two or more flowers at the apex, leaving only a single flower on the branch. Seed oil was extracted from a sample of 20 fruits at different stages of development: 60, 70, 80, 90 and, 100 days counted from the start of the anthesis. Results: The general composition of the oil of pomegranate seeds cv. Molar, regardless of the stage of fruit development, takes the order of PUFA> SFA> MUFA, with a higher content of polyunsaturated fatty acids (omega 3 and 6), and after saturated and monounsaturated, and low concentrations of total Trans Isomers. Conclusion: The best periods for the consumption of pomegranate seed oil are between 80 and 90 days due to the higher amount of unsaturated acids and punicic acid, and lower concentrations of palmitic acid, as well as a higher concentration of phenolic compounds. The method of DPPH, with methanol extractor identifies the antioxidant activity of pomegranate seed oil, however not efficiently.