Effects of calcium lactate on postharvest quality of bitter gourd fruit during cold storage

This study was aimed to assess the effects of calcium lactate (CL) on quality, shelf-life and storage physiology of bitter gourd. Fruits were dipped in the aqueous solution of CL (50, 75, and 100 mM) and stored at 10 degrees C and 85-95% relative humidity (RH). The changes in physical, biochemical and enzymological parameters were recorded at five days interval. The results showed that in CL@100 mM treated fruit, physiological loss in weight (PLW) and decay incidence were minimized Conversely, their firmness, total phenolics, antioxidants and total chlorophyll retained at higher side. The CL @ 75 mM was able to retain higher ascorbic acid up to 20 days while CL@100 mM was effective in controlling pectin methylesterase (PME) activity and increasing the inhibitory activity of alpha-amylase and alpha-glucosidase. Therefore, our observations suggested that by applying CL@100 mM, 5 days extra (20 days) shelf-life of bitter gourd fruit can be achieved with notable retention of biochemical compounds over untreated fruit (15 days with poor retention of important nutrients).

Automated summary

The study found that using 100 mM of CL treatment can minimize physiological loss in weight and decay incidence of bitter gourd, while maintaining higher levels of firmness, total phenolics, antioxidants, and chlorophyll. Additionally, 75 mM of CL treatment can keep ascorbic acid levels high for up to 20 days, and 100 mM of CL treatment is effective in controlling PME activity and increasing inhibitory activity of alpha-amylase and alpha-glucosidase. Overall, the results suggest that CL treatment can significantly extend the shelf-life of bitter gourd fruits and retain important nutrients.