Nutritional and keeping quality of round gourd in response to exogenous application of salicylic acid during storage

The researchers studied the impact of salicylic acid (SA) coating treatment on the nutritional quality and shelf life of the round gourd as well as its postharvest parameters during storage. The use of SA was assessed with regard to its effects of weight loss, marketability, diseases occurrence, and its many sensory properties which include: aroma, taste and firmness, texture, and color. Moreover, the nutritional values that included protein, ash, fats, ascorbic acid, reducing sugars, non-reducing sugars, and total soluble solids (TSS) were also examined to check how the gourd nutritional value had been affected after coating with SA. An elemental and AI FTIR (Fourier-transform infrared) analysis were also conducted to learn the biochemical alterations in storage. Findings depicted that the nutritional quality of foods enhanced by SA coating with a lessened weight loss and a longer shelf life taking place, through pathogen containment and the maintenance of sensory characteristics. These results indicate that SA coating may become a viable strategy to enhance the marketability of round gourds and its postharvest life quality.