Control of fungal spoilage in strawberries using crude plant extracts against the fungus Botrytis cinerea

Abstract

The study evaluated the conservation of strawberries treated with crude plant extracts (barbatimão, sibipiruna, guarana, and catuaba) against fungal deterioration and physicochemical characteristics. MIC of 0.125; 0.0156; 0.25 and 0.0312 g/mL were found for barbatimão, sibipiruna, guaraná and catuaba, respectively, against B. cinerea. Treated samples showed no fungal deterioration during 11 days. Analyzes of weight loss, soluble solids, titratable acidity, and pH variation were performed. Sibipiruna showed lower values ​​of mass loss, and the greatest occurred for the catuaba extract. Barbatimão did not change soluble solids and stood out with catuaba in the color parameters L and a*. Small changes in pH were observed with time. Soluble solids maintained values ​​between 6.47 ^oBrix and 9.90 ^oBrix for catuaba and sibipiruna extracts at zero and six days. Principal component analysis did not show a strong correlation between the variables. The extracts become alternatives for strawberry conservation, increasing conservation and maintaining physicochemical characteristics.

Graphical Abstract

Keywords:

• Plant extract
• Botrytis cinerea
• conservation

Acknowledgment

The authors are grateful for the help of student Ana Paula de Oliveira from the Integrated Technical Course in Informatics at UTFPR-CM.

Disclosure statement

No potential conflict of interest was reported by the authors.

Funding

The author(s) reported there is no funding associated with the work featured in this article.