Evaluation of different postharvest conditions to preserve the amount of bioactive compounds, physicochemical quality parameters and sensory attributes of ‘Sweetheart’ cherries.

Sweet cherries (Prunus avium L.) ‘Sweetheart’ were harvested at different production regions from Portugal (Cova da Beira and Portalegre) and Spain (Valle de Jerte). Cherries were harvested at their commercial maturation according to the empirical knowledge of external color corresponding to good quality. Fruits were stored and evaluated in order to study their quality on the harvest day and during a period of 21 days, at cold storage (1 ºC, 95% RH). The sweet cherry ‘Sweetheart’ is a well-known variety and a highly appreciated one but fruits present a short shelf life. On the other hand the effect of different “terroir” on cherry characteristics should be known and clarified. Fruits from day 0, considered without storage, were kept at 20ºC and analyzed. Every weak, 3 replicas were randomly picked up and 10 fruits from each one were submitted to several analyses after fruit temperature stabilized at 20ºC. Several quality parameters were evaluated: external colour (L*, a*, b*), texture, soluble solids content (SSC), titratable acidity (TA) and the ratio between soluble solid contents (SSC) and tritratable acidity (TA). Fruits from different orchards and locations were significantly different according to these parameters. Fruits from Cova da Beira were less firm comparing with other two regions, Valle de Jerte and Portalegre, which may indicate a higher maturation rate at harvest in those fruits. This is in accordance with SSC/titratable acidity rate suggesting a late harvest in Cova da Beira comparing with other two orchards, however fruits from Cova da Beira exhibit a poor color at harvest. These results clearly showed a lower correlation between SSC and firmness considering fruits origin.

Effect of storage on physical-chemical properties and phenolics of sweet cherry from São Julião region.

Effect of storage on physical-chemical properties and phenolics of sweet cherry from São Julião region. A.C. Agulheiro-Santos1, F. Vieira1, D. Gonzalez2, M. Lozano2, V. Palma1, A.E. Rato1 1Universidade de Évora. Instituto de Ciências Agrárias e Ambientais Mediterrânica (ICAAM). 7000 Évora, Portugal. 2Centro de Investigaciones Científicas y Tecnológicas de Extremadura (CICYTEX). Ctra. San Vicente. Finca Santa Engracia. 06071 Badajoz, Spain. Worldwide the consumption of fruit and vegetables is increasing due to the dietary guidelines recommended by nutritionist. Because of their high content on phenols, vitamins, mineral and antioxidants, berry fruits are consumed not only in fresh forms but also as processed and derivative products such as juices, yogurts, jellies and dried fruits. As a high consumed red fruit, sweet cherry has been the focus on some studies, mainly regarding bioactive compounds content. “Sweetheart” cherries from São Julião region (Alentejo, Portugal) from two different production campaigns were kept in different storage conditions in order to evaluate both the environmental and storage effect on some physical-chemical properties and phenolics. Cold conditions - Cold (1 ºC, 95% RH) and modified atmosphere - MA (1 ºC, 95% RH with micro-perforated bags of Pplus®, Sidlaw Packaging, Bristol, UK) were tested. In order to establish the appropriate storage conditions, individual phenolic acids and physical-chemical properties were analysed during two consecutive years. Results show a general decrease on phenolic compounds content between cherries from both years. It is also observed that MA conditions do not affect significantly both phenolics and physical-chemical parameters when compared with Cold conditions. Additionally, it is observed similar behaviour on Cold and MA sweet cherries regarding its pH, total soluble solids content (TSS), titratable acidity (TA) and colour and individual phenols during storage time. Concluding, these results show, as expected, changes between cultivars which may be correlated with the environmental conditions on different years. Keywords: sweet cherry, postharvest, phenols, physical-chemical, storage conditions.

Sweet cherry: composition, postharvest preservation, processing and trends for its future use

Background Sweet cherries (Prunus avium L.) are a nutritious fruit which are rich in polyphenols and have high antioxidant potential. Most sweet cherries are consumed fresh and a small proportion of the total sweet cherries production is value added to make processed food products. Sweet cherries are highly perishable fruit with a short harvest season, therefore extensive preservation and processing methods have been developed for the extension of their shelf-life and distribution of their products. Scope and Approach In this review, the main physicochemical properties of sweet cherries, as well as bioactive components and their determination methods are described. The study emphasises the recent progress of postharvest technology, such as controlled/modified atmosphere storage, edible coatings, irradiation, and biological control agents, to maintain sweet cherries for the fresh market. Valorisations of second-grade sweet cherries, as well as trends for the diversification of cherry products for future studies are also discussed. Key Findings and Conclusions Sweet cherry fruit have a short harvest period and marketing window. The major loss in quality after harvest include moisture loss, softening, decay and stem browning. Without compromising their eating quality, the extension in fruit quality and shelf-life for sweet cherries is feasible by means of combination of good handling practice and applications of appropriate postharvest technology. With the drive of health-food sector, the potential of using second class cherries including cherry stems as a source of bioactive compound extraction is high, as cherry fruit is well-known for being rich in health-promoting components.

Quality of cherry ‘Sweetheart’ from different regions of Portugal and Spain (Cova da Beira, Portalegre and Valle del Jerte).

Sweet cherries (Prunus avium L.) ‘Sweetheart’ were harvested at different production regions from Portugal (Cova da Beira and Portalegre) and Spain (Valle de Jerte). Cherries were harvested at their commercial maturation according to the empirical knowledge of external color corresponding to good quality. Fruits were stored and evaluated in order to study their quality on the harvest day and during a period of 21 days, at cold storage (1 ºC, 95% RH). The sweet cherry ‘Sweetheart’ is a well known variety and a highly appreciated one but fruits present a short shelf life. On the other hand the effect of different “terroir” on cherry characteristics should be known and clarified. Fruits from day 0, considered without storage, were kept at 20ºC and analyzed. Every weak, 3 replicas were randomly picked up and 10 fruits from each one were submitted to several analyses after fruit temperature stabilized at 20ºC. Several quality parameters were evaluated: external color (L*, a*, b*), texture, soluble solids content (SSC), titratable acidity (TA) and the ratio between soluble solid contents (SSC) and tritratable acidity (TA). Fruits from different orchards and locations were significantly different according to these parameters. Fruits from Cova da Beira were less firm comparing with other two regions, Valle de Jerte and Portalegre, which may indicate a higher maturation rate at harvest in those fruits. This is in accordance with SSC/titratable acidity rate suggesting a late harvest in Cova da Beira comparing with other two orchards, however fruits from Cova da Beira exhibit a poor color at harvest. These results clearly showed a lower correlation between SSC and firmness considering fruits origin.

Efecto del estado de madurez y atmósferas modificadas sobre la calidad de cerezas cv. Sweetheart

Se estudió el efecto de cosechar cerezas en dos estados de madurez, así como el uso de atmósferas modificadas empleando PBD y PVC, sobre la calidad de fruta almacenada a 0 °C durante 21 y 42 días, respectivamente. La calidad fue evaluada en base a pérdida de peso (%), color (ángulo hue), firmeza, contenido de sólidos solubles, aspecto de los pedicelos y presencia de podredumbres. La fruta cosechada más madura presentó color, sólidos solubles y firmeza adecuados durante los 21 días a 0 °C, pero el almacenamiento estuvo limitado por la deshidratación de los pedicelos, que mantuvieron aspecto comercial sólo durante una semana. Para ambos estados de madurez, la pérdida de peso fue importante y se registró aumento del contenido de sólidos solubles y firmeza. Sin embargo, la fruta cosechada más inmadura no alcanzó en ningún momento la coloración ni contenido de azúcares de la fruta cosechada en estado de madurez más avanzado. Mediante el uso de las bolsas PBD se logró minimizar la deshidratación y mantener las características organolépticas de la fruta, así como un alto porcentaje de pedicelos con buen aspecto y color durante los 42 días de conservación en frío. El uso de PVC se vio limitado por el deterioro de los pedicelos que afectó alrededor del 50 % de la fruta analizada al término de la primera semana.

Almacenamiento refrigerado de cerezas : efecto de madurez y atmósfera modificada

Se estudió el efecto de cosechar cerezas en dos estados de madurez: rojo pálido y rojo maduro y la utilización de atmósferas modificadas, empleando PBD de 11 y 40 m, sobre la calidad de fruta almacenada a 0 °C y después de 3 días a temperatura ambiente. La calidad fue evaluada en términos de pérdida de peso (%), color (ángulo hue), firmeza, contenido de sólidos solubles, aspecto de los pedicelos y presencia de podredumbres. La fruta cosechada más madura presentó color, sólidos solubles y firmeza adecuados durante 21 días a 0 °C pero el almacenamiento prolongado estuvo limitado por la deshidratación de los pedicelos, que mantuvieron aspecto comercial sólo durante una semana. Para ambos estados de madurez se registró importante pérdida de peso; disminución del valor de °hue y aumentos de sólidos solubles y de firmeza. Durante la simulación comercial la fruta experimentó ablandamiento, pérdida de peso, oscurecimiento de la piel y deshidratación de los pedicelos. Con el uso del PBD no se detectaron cambios significativos para ninguno de los parámetros estudiados, permitiendo además reducir la deshidratación y mantener el aspecto comercial de los pedicelos, independientemente del espesor de la película.

QUALITY EVALUATION OF 'SUNBURST' CHERRIES HARVESTED AT DIFFERENT RIPENESS STAGES .

The sweet cherry ‘Sunburst’ is highly appreciated by consumers due to its organoleptic traits. Regional producers tend to harvest cherries sooner in order to increase their profits. With the aim of understanding the consequences of this we have tested the effect of different ripeness stages at the moment of harvesting on fruit quality. Quality parameters tested included external colour (L*, a*, b*), fruit texture, total soluble solids (TSS), and titratable acidity (TA). To evaluate nutritional quality total antioxidant activity was measured too. Once again, and in agreement with results obtained in previous studies, we conclude that there is no advantage in picking less ripe cherries.

Cultivar-specific effects of pathogen testing on storage root yield of sweet potato, Ipomoea batatas (L.) Lam.

The accumulation and perpetuation of viral pathogens over generations of clonal propagation in crop species such as sweet potato, Ipomoea batatas,inevitably result in a reduction in crop yield and quality. This study was conducted at Bundaberg, Australia to compare the productivity of field-derived and pathogen-tested (PT)clones of 14 sweet potato cultivars and the yield benefits of using healthy planting materials. The field-derived clonal materials were exposed to the endemic viruses, while the PT clones were subjected to thermotherapy and meristem-tip culture to eliminate viral pathogens. The plants were indexed for viruses using nitrocellulose membrane-enzyme-linked immunosorbent assay and graft-inoculations onto Ipomoea setosa. A net benefit of 38% in storage root yield was realised from using PT materials in this study.Conversely, in a similar study previously conducted at Kerevat, Papua New Guinea (PNG), a net deficit of 36% was realised. This reinforced our finding that the response to pathogen testing was cultivar dependent and that the PNG cultivars in these studies generally exhibited increased tolerance to the endemic viruses present at the respective trial sites as manifested in their lack of response from the use of PT clones. They may be useful sources for future resistance breeding efforts. Nonetheless, the potential economic gain from using PT stocks necessitates the use of pathogen testing on virus-susceptible commercial cultivars.

Occurrence of LINE, gypsy-like, and copia-like retrotransposons in the clonally propagated sweet potato (Ipomoea batatas L.)

Retrotransposons are a class of transposable elements that represent a major fraction of the repetitive DNA of most eukaryotes. Their abundance stems from their expansive replication strategies. We screened and isolated sequence fragments of long terminal repeat (LTR), gypsy-like reverse transcriptase (rt) and gypsy-like envelope (env) domains, and two partial sequences of non-LTR retrotransposons, long interspersed element (LINE), in the clonally propagated allohexaploid sweet potato (Ipomoea batatas (L.) Lam.) genome. Using dot-blot hybridization, these elements were found to be present in the ~1597 Mb haploid sweet potato genome with copy numbers ranging from ~50 to ~4100 as observed in the partial LTR (IbLtr-1) and LINE (IbLi-1) sequences, respectively. The continuous clonal propagation of sweet potato may have contributed to such a multitude of copies of some of these genomic elements. Interestingly, the isolated gypsy-like env and gypsy-like rt sequence fragments, IbGy-1 (~2100 copies) and IbGy-2 (~540 copies), respectively, were found to be homologous to the Bagy-2 cDNA sequences of barley (Hordeum vulgare L.). Although the isolated partial sequences were found to be homologous to other transcriptionally active elements, future studies are required to determine whether they represent elements that are transcriptionally active under normal and (or) stressful conditions.

People, content, location : sweet spotting urban screens for situated engagement

A growing body of research is looking at ways to bring the processes and benefits of online deliberation to the places they are about and in turn allow a larger, targeted proportion of the urban public to have a voice, be heard, and engage in questions of city planning and design. Seeking to take advantage of the civic opportunities of situated engagement through public screens and mobile devices, our research informed a public urban screen content application DIS that we deployed and evaluated in a wide range of real world public and urban environments. For example, it is currently running on the renowned urban screen at Federation Square in Melbourne. We analysed the data from these user studies within a conceptual framework that positions situated engagement across three key parameters: people, content, and location. We propose a way to identify the sweet spot within the nexus of these parameters to help deploy and run interactive systems to maximise the quality of the situated engagement for civic and related deliberation purposes.

Law student psychological distress, ADR and sweet-minded, sweet-eyed hope

Empirical studies conducted by both Australian and American researchers have established law school’s causative role in increasing law student psychological distress. The purpose of this article is to highlight the role that law school curriculum might play in addressing this problem. By utilising lessons from the field of positive psychology (and in particular hope theory) a first-year law subject at the Queensland University of Technology has been specifically designed to promote law student well-being. Traditional legal education and pedagogy do not hold the answers for addressing this social phenomenon. A first-year curriculum that introduces students to alternative dispute resolution, non-adversarial justice, resilience and the positive role of lawyers in society may go some way to addressing the law student well-being challenge.

Sweet sorghum : opportunities for a new, renewable fuel and food industry in Australia

Sweet sorghum is receiving significant global interest as an agro-industrial crop because of its capacity to co-produce energy, food, and feed products in integrated biorefineries. This report assesses the opportunities to develop a sweet sorghum industry in Australia, reports on research demonstrating the production of energy, food, and feed products, and assesses the potential economic and sustainability benefits of sweet sorghum biorefineries in the Australian context.

A sweet promise among Malaysians [Letter to the Editor]

The prevalence of diabetes in Malaysia has increased by almost twofold indicating that for every six Malaysians older than 30, one is diabetic.1 In Malaysia, diabetes is reportedly most common among persons of Indian descent followed by the Malays and Chinese...