Effect of hot water treatment on quality and antioxidant properties of cornelian ‎cherry (Cornus mas L.) during cold storage

Quality and nutritional value reduction after harvest, limit shelf-life of cornelian cherry fruit. In this study, the mechanism employed by hot water (HW) treatment (42 °C, 10, 20 and 30 minutes) on retarding senescence and keeping sensory and nutritional quality thus prolonging the storage life of cornelian cherry fruits during storage at 4±1 °C for 21 days was investigated. Result showed that the cornelian cherry fruits treated with HW 42 °C/20 min effectively slowed the process of senescence and keeping sensory and nutritional quality, with enhanced ascorbic acid contents. Cornelian cherry fruits treated with HW 42 °C/20 min via increasing ROS scavenging molecule accumulation or enzymes activity such as ascorbic acid, superoxide dismutase, catalase, ascorbate peroxidase, peroxidase, glutathione–s–transferase, glutathione peroxidase, glutathione reductase was accompanied with lower lypoxygenase activity leading to decreasing H2O2 accumulation and all of them results to enhancing membrane integrity revealed by lower malondialdehyde accumulation and electrolyte leakage. Finally, postharvest HW 42 °C/20 min treatment can be introduced as auseful strategy for supplying cornelian cherry fruits with higher bioactive molecules accumulation along with maintaining membrane integrity and prolonged storage life.