Effect of Storage on the Nutritional Quality of Queen Garnet Plum

Abstract

Due to high perishability, plums are harvested at an early stage of maturity to extend postharvest storage life. Storage time and temperature can significantly affect the phytochemical and sugar composition of plums, altering their palatability and nutritional quality. In this study, variations in physiochemical properties (total soluble solids (TSS), titratable acidity (TA), color (chroma and hue angle)), phytochemical composition (total phenolic content (TPC), total anthocyanin content (TAC), and carotenoids), and sugars in three different tissues of the Queen Garnet plum (QGP) during storage at two common domestic storage temperatures (4 and 23 °C) were evaluated. There was an increase (p > 0.05) in TSS and a reduction (p < 0.05) in TA of the outer flesh at 23 °C. Chroma values of all the tissues reduced (p < 0.05) at 23 °C. At 4 °C, chroma values fluctuated between storage days. The TAC of the peel was the highest (p < 0.05) among the different tissues and continued to increase up to 10 days of storage at 23 °C (3-fold increase). At 4 °C, the highest (p < 0.05) TAC (peel) was observed after 14 days of storage (1.2-fold increase). TPC showed similar results. The highest (p < 0.05) TPC was recorded in the peel after 10 days of storage at 23 °C (2.3-fold increase) and after 14 days of storage at 4 °C (1.3-fold increase), respectively. Total carotenoids in the flesh samples at both storage temperatures were reduced (p < 0.05) after 14 days. Total sugars also decreased during storage. The results of the present study clearly showed that common domestic storage conditions can improve the nutritional quality of plums by increasing the content of bioactive anthocyanins and other phenolic compounds. However, the increase in phytochemicals needs to be counterbalanced with the decrease in total sugars and TA potentially affecting the sensory attributes of the plums.

The Physicochemical Attributes, Volatile Compounds, and Antioxidant Activities of Five Plum Cultivars in Sichuan

“…Sugars and organic acids were extracted according to the method described by Kodagoda et al [19], and their contents were measured as described by Orazem et al [20]. Briefly, the enucleated fresh plums were frozen in liquid nitrogen and ground to a fine powder, and 1.0 g of fruit powder was brought to a volume of 20 mL using distilled water.…”

Investigating the Therapeutic Potential of Plants and Plant-Based Medicines: Relevance to Antioxidant and Neuroprotective Effects

“…In addition, an examination of the treatment and preventative effects of plant-based medicines on microglia, which regulate the immune response in the brain and might be key to oxidative stress [ 87 ], would also be important. Another limitation of plant-based research is that numerous factors can influence the concentration of compounds in plants, including nutrition, humidity, temperature, the age of the plant, strain, harvest time, plant stress, manufacturing processes, and storage conditions (e.g., plant bioactive compounds can be heat and light sensitive) [ 82 , 88 , 89 , 90 , 91 , 92 ]. Therefore, the variability of plant phytochemical composition can limit the generalisability of the results.…”

Quality Assessment of Burdekin Plum (Pleiogynium timoriense) during Ambient Storage

“…Peel and inner flesh color were measured using a Minolta CR-400 Chroma Meter (Konica Minolta, Osaka, Japan). Color space including a* (chromaticity coordinate from green to red), b* (chromaticity coordinate from blue to yellow) and L* (lightness) was recorded [ 122 ]. Total color difference between different storage days was calculated according to Pathare, Opara and Al-Said [ 38 ] …”