fatemeh borna

Considering the sensitivity of apple fruit to many pests and diseases and the sensitivity of consumers to synthetic pesticides, the use of plant essential oils has increased to increase the lifespan of various horticultural products, including apples. In this research, total phenol, total flavonoid and antioxidant properties of Elettaria cardamomum essential oil were investigated. In addition, the antimicrobial property of this essential oil was evaluated on a number of fungi that cause spoilage of apple fruit, including Penicillium expansum, Botrytis cinerea, and Alternaria alternata. The phenol and flavonoid content of E. cardamomum essential oil was equal to 69.60 mg of gallic acid per gram of essential oil and 27.40 mg of quercetin per gram of essential oil, respectively. The amount of antioxidant property of E. cardamomum essential oil in DPPH and ABTS free radical inhibition method was obtained as 57.30% and 63.60%, respectively. In the investigation of the antifungal property, the largest inhibition zone was observed in P. expansum by disk diffusion and agar well methods, and the minimum inhibitory concentration for P. expansum and B. cinerea fungi was 8 mg/ml and minimum fungicidal concentration was 64 mg/ml. Considering the high antioxidant and antifungal properties of E. cardamomum essential oil, it can be used as a suitable alternative to synthetic fungicides.

The growth of fungal pathogens on the grape fruit causes a decrease in its quality and shelf life. In this study, the antifungal activity of ginger (Zingiber officinale) essential oil was investigated against fungal pathogens that cause spoilage in grape fruit. Ginger essential oil was extracted using hydrodistillation method and the content of total phenol, total flavonoid, antioxidant activity based on the inhibition of DPPH and ABTS free radicals and its antifungal activity against Aspergillus niger, Rhizopus stolonifer and Botrytis cinerea strains based on disc diffusion agar, well diffusion agar, minimum inhibitory concentration, and minimum fungicidal concentration were evaluated. The results showed that ginger essential oil has 89.80 mg GA/g total phenol and 38.60 mg QE/g total flavonoid. Its antioxidant activity against DPPH and ABTS free radicals was 73.45 and 66.53 μg/ml, respectively. The results of antifungal activity showed that A. niger and B. cinerea were the most sensitive and resistant fungal strains to essential oil, respectively, and the diameter of the inhibition zone in the disc diffusion and well diffusion agar methods, the minimum inhibitory concentration, and the minimum fungicidal concentration for the A. niger strain was equal to 13.90 mm, 14.50 mm, 8 mg/mL and 64 mg/mL, respectively. In general, ginger essential oil can be used as an antioxidant and antimicrobial agent to increase the shelf life of agricultural products.

Grape is a very perishable fruit that has a short shelf life. Due to the increase in consumer awareness, the tendency to use natural preservative compounds instead of pesticides and chemical preservatives has increased. Plant essential oils are considered to be the most appropriate natural compounds due to their potentially effective compounds. Therefore, the aim of this research was to identify the chemical compounds of Foeniculum vulgare essential oil, determine its phenolic and flavonoid content, and investigate the antioxidant and antifungal activity of this essential oil against a number of molds that cause spoilage after grape fruit harvesting. The compounds identified in F. vulgare essential oil included limonene, fenchone, p-allylanisole and anethole, which made up 97.60% of the total essential oil. The total phenol content of F. vulgare essential oil was equal to 26.29 mg GAE/g and the total flavonoid content was equal to 19.23 mg QE/g. The antioxidant properties of the essential oil of this plant were obtained by DPPH, ABTS and beta-carotene-linoleic acid decolorization methods, respectively, 38.56, 42.12, and 30.30%. Also, , it was found that Foeniculum vulgare essential oil is capable of inhibiting and controlling Rhizopus stolonifera, Aspergillus niger, and Botrytis cinerea. Due to the antimicrobial and antioxidant compounds present in F. vulgare, the essential oil of this plant can be used as a compound with practical properties to increase the shelf life of agricultural products, including grapes.

In the present study, the hydroalcoholic extract of Withania somnifera was extracted and then the content of total phenol (by Folin-Ciocalteu reagent), total flavonoid (by aluminum chloride method), antioxidant activity (based on DPPH and ABTS free radical scavenging methods) and its antifungal effect against Rhizopu stolonifers, Botrytis cinerea, Penicillium expansum and Alternaria alternata (fungi cause spoilage postharvest apple and strawberry fruits) were determined based on disk diffusion agar, well diffusion agar, minimum inhibitory concentration, and minimum fungicidal concentration. The amount of phenol and flavonoids in the extract was 53.16 mg GAE/g and 28.20 mg QE/g, respectively. The antioxidant power of the hydroalcoholic extract was 69.80 and 57.15 μg/ml in terms of DPPH and ABTS free radical scavenging, respectively. The results of antimicrobial activity based on disk diffusion agar and well diffusion agar showed that increasing the concentration of the extract caused a significant increase in the diameter of the growth inhibition zone and Botrytis cinerea and Alternaria alternata were the most resistant and sensitive strains to the extract, respectively. In general, Penicillium expansum and Alternaria alternata were more sensitive than Rhizopus stolonifer and Botrytis cinerea with minimum inhibitory and fungicidal concentrations of 16 and 128 mg/ml, respectively.

Roselle belongs to the Malvaceae family, it is an important source of vitamins, minerals, and the pharmacological effects of Roselle are related to its components such as flavonoids, anthocyanins, organic acids, phytosterols, polyphenols, and polysaccharides, some of which have antioxidant activities. In the present study, the storage life of fresh Roselle calyces was evaluated in terms of changes in terms of biochemical properties such as total phenol, flavonoid, anthocyanin contents and antioxidant activity for 5 to 30 days at 0, 4, 10 and ambient temperature (23) degrees Celsius. The results showed that the lower temperature (0 and 4 °C) preserves the appearance of the calyces during storage in the refrigerator. The shelf life based on the appearance of the product was higher at 0 and 4 °C than at 10 and 23 °C. In addition, fresh calyces exposed to 4°C accumulated higher amounts of phenolics, flavonoids, anthocyanins, and antioxidant activity than those exposed to 0°C to overcome severe cold stress. Consequently, for short-term storage or immediate consumption, it is desirable to store fresh calyces at 4°C to obtain high antioxidant content. However, if the goal is to extend the cold storage period, storage at 0°C is recommended.

Seed germination is an important stage in the life cycle of plants. Seed germination is affected by various environmental stresses such as salinity, high temperature and drought. Squill (Drimia maritima) is a medicinal plant that is used in traditional medicine and the use of seeds is one of the methods of propagation of this plant. There is no information about the effect of environmental stresses on seed germination of this plant. In this study, the effect of temperature treatments (15, 20 and 25 °C) and different salinity levels (0, 50, 100, 150, 200 and 250 mM) on seed germination and seedling growth indices were investigated. The results showed that temperature and salinity treatments have a significant effect on germination and seedling growth indices. At all three temperatures of 15, 20 and 25 °C, seed germination and seedling growth indices decreased under salinity stress and the lowest seed germination and seedling growth were obtained in 200 and 250 mM sodium chloride treatments. At all three temperatures, salinity stress had a inhibitory effect on seedling growth indices such as the length of different seedling sections and the fresh and dry weight of seedlings as well as the seedling vigor index of Squill. The results of the present experiment showed that Squill is sensitive to salinity in the germination stage and the temperature of 20°C is the appropriate temperature for the germination of the Squill’s seed.

Moshgak [Ducrosia anethifolia (DC.) Boiss] belonging to the Apiaceae family is widely distributed in the south of Iran. Fars province is one of the important habitats of this plant and it is important to collect information about the distribution of this plant in different parts of Fars province. In this research, the essential components of plants collected in Khor region (Larestan, southeast of Fars province) were investigated for the first time. Collection of plant samples was done in April 2019 from Khor Larestan region.In this study, the essential oil components of plants collected in Khoor region of Fars province were studied for the first time. The essential oils of the collected samples were extracted by water distillation using a Clevenger apparatus and the quality of the essential oils were evaluated by gas chromatography - mass spectrometry. According to the results, 22 chemical compounds were identified in the essential oil, including ο-cymene, γ-terpinene, Linalooll, n-Decanal (37.63, 19.05, 16.26, 4.94 percent respectively). They formed the highest concentration and bulk of the essential oil, which was different from the results reported about the essential oil compounds of mushkag collected from other parts of Fars province. It seems that one of the reasons for this difference in the results is due to the climatic conditions.

Motherwort (Leonurus cardiaca), a medicinal plant of the Lamiaceae family, has a great diversity and wide distribution in Iran. It is essential due to having leonurine with blood dilution and muscle relaxation effects.

To evaluate the response of the Iranian Motherwort ecotypes in drought environments, an experiment was carried out in split plot design based on RCBD with three replications. Three irrigation levels were considered as main plots, including %100, one-third, and two-third of field capacity, and four ecotypes as sub-plots including Kerman, Taleghan, Sarab and Khansar. The experiment was conducted at Horticultural Research Station, the University of Tehran, in Karaj.

The results showed that water stress affected morphological traits significantly. Water stress had a significant increasing effect on the phenolic and flavonoid contents and antioxidant activity of Motherwort ecotypes. The highest and the lowest total phenol content were observed in Taleghan and Kerman ecotypes, 7.34 and 4.21 mg/mg fresh weight, respectively. The amount and the percentage of leonurine were increased by water stress. The highest and the lowest values of leonurine were observed in the ecotypes of Taleghan and Sarab, respectively, in all three levels of irrigation. There were significant correlations between dry weight (-0.43), antioxidant (0.36), proline (-0.35), catalase (0.4), and the percentage of leonurine.

Research limitations: 

There were no limitations to the report.

Originality/Value: 

It was found a significant variation among the ecotypes in response to water stress. The ecotypes of Taleghan and Sarab were the most tolerant and the most susceptible ecotypes to drought stress among the studied ecotypes.