AUTHOR=Wang Dengliang , Randhawa Mazhar Saeed , Azam Muhammad , Liu Hongru , Ejaz Shaghef , Ilahy Riadh , Qadri Rashad , Khan Muhammad Imran , Umer Muhammad Ali , Khan Muhammad Arslan , Wang Ke TITLE=Exogenous melatonin treatment reduces postharvest senescence and maintains the quality of papaya fruit during cold storage JOURNAL=Frontiers in Plant Science VOLUME=13 YEAR=2022 URL=https://www.frontiersin.org/journals/plant-science/articles/10.3389/fpls.2022.1039373 DOI=10.3389/fpls.2022.1039373 ISSN=1664-462X ABSTRACT=Introduction

Exogenous melatonin (EMT) application has been used to reduce postharvest senescence and improve the quality and antioxidant enzyme activities of papaya fruits during cold storage.

Methods

The effects of exogenous melatonin application (1. 5 mM) were investigated on papaya fruits during cold storage (10°C ± 2°C) for 28 days in the present study.

Results and discussion

The EMT treatment delayed postharvest senescence significantly with lower maturing status compared with untreated papaya fruits (control). In addition, EMT treatment maintained substantially higher titratable acidity values and ascorbic acid content but significantly lower soluble solids content and lower weight loss compared with the untreated fruits. Concerning the antioxidant capacity, the EMT-treated papaya fruit exhibited markedly higher total phenolic content and, consequently, higher DPPH-radical scavenging activity than the control group. The EMT treatment not only kept a higher enzyme activity of superoxide dismutase, peroxidase, and catalase but also significantly inhibited the accumulation of hydrogen peroxide and malondialdehyde, along with satisfying sensory attributes.

Conclusion

The findings of this study indicated that EMT application could be commercially used as an eco-friendly strategy to reduce postharvest senescence and maintain the fresh-like quality traits of papaya fruit during cold storage.