Management of Postharvest Fungal Diseases of Fruits and Vegetables

A special issue of Journal of Fungi (ISSN 2309-608X). This special issue belongs to the section "Fungi in Agriculture and Biotechnology".

Deadline for manuscript submissions: 30 April 2025 | Viewed by 2260

Special Issue Editors


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Guest Editor
Instituto Superior de Investigaciones Biológicas (INSIBIO), CONICET-UNT, and Instituto de Química Biológica “Dr Bernabé Bloj”, Facultad de Bioquímica, Química y Farmacia, UNT. Chacabuco 461, T4000ILI San Miguel de Tucumán, Argentina
Interests: citrus; postharvest; green mold; fungicides; food coating; biocontrol; low toxicity salts

E-Mail Website
Guest Editor
Instituto Superior de Investigaciones Biológicas (INSIBIO), CONICET-UNT, and Instituto de Química Biológica “Dr Bernabé Bloj”, Facultad de Bioquímica, Química y Farmacia, UNT. Chacabuco 461, T4000ILI San Miguel de Tucumán, Argentina
Interests: postharvest; lemons; UV-B radiation; nanoparticles

Special Issue Information

Dear Colleagues,

Postharvest fungal diseases result in major economic losses in fruits and vegetables, estimated at billions of dollars globally each year. Effective management of these pathogens is critical to ensuring the safety, quality, and shelf life of these consumable crops. While conventional chemical fungicides have proven efficacy, concerns have emerged regarding food residuals and the development of pathogen resistance. This Special Issue brings together cutting-edge research focused on alternative, ecological, and natural strategies for managing postharvest fungal diseases across a wide variety of fruits and vegetables. Articles address topics including biocontrol agents, low-toxicity compounds, edible coatings, modified atmospheres, non-thermal technologies, and integrated pest management approaches. The goal is to provide an updated understanding of innovative techniques to mitigate postharvest losses, while attenuating issues associated with traditional chemical methods.

Dr. Luciana Cerioni
Prof. Dr. Viviana A. Rapisarda
Guest Editors

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Keywords

  • biological control
  • low-toxicity compounds
  • edible coatings
  • non-thermal technology

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Published Papers (2 papers)

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Research

16 pages, 9567 KiB  
Article
Antifungal Action of Metallic Nanoparticles Against Fungicide-Resistant Pathogens Causing Main Postharvest Lemon Diseases
by Carina G. Baigorria, Luciana Cerioni, Mario A. Debes, Ana E. Ledesma, Patricio Alastuey, Mónica Tirado, Sabrina I. Volentini and Viviana A. Rapisarda
J. Fungi 2024, 10(11), 782; https://doi.org/10.3390/jof10110782 - 11 Nov 2024
Viewed by 415
Abstract
Postharvest fungal diseases are the main cause of economic losses in lemon production. The continued use of synthetic fungicides to control the diseases favors the emergence of resistant strains, which encourages the search for alternatives. The aim of this study was to assess [...] Read more.
Postharvest fungal diseases are the main cause of economic losses in lemon production. The continued use of synthetic fungicides to control the diseases favors the emergence of resistant strains, which encourages the search for alternatives. The aim of this study was to assess the efficacy of metallic nanoparticles (NPs) as antifungal agents against local isolates of Penicillium digitatum and Penicillium italicum, each of them in a fungicide-sensitive and -resistant version, and a Geotrichum citri-aurantii isolate. NPs of ZnO, CuO, and Ag were synthesized and characterized by spectroscopy and microscopy, presenting average sizes < 25 nm and spherical shapes. ZnO-NPs did not present antifungal activity at the assayed conditions, while the minimum fungicidal concentrations (MFCs) were 1000 and 10 µg mL−1 for CuO-NPs and Ag-NPs, respectively. The NPs’ antimicrobial action included conidial membrane permeability and strong intracellular disorganization. Moreover, the Ag-NPs reduced green mold incidence on inoculated lemons when applied to the fruit. Taken together, Ag-NPs were effective in inhibiting both fungicide-sensitive and -resistant isolates of the main lemon postharvest pathogens, suggesting their potential use as an alternative approach. Full article
(This article belongs to the Special Issue Management of Postharvest Fungal Diseases of Fruits and Vegetables)
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15 pages, 4715 KiB  
Article
Active Prevalence of Fusarium falciforme and F. acutatum Causing Basal Rot of Onion in Maharashtra, India
by Ram Dutta, Krishnappa Jayalakshmi, Auji Radhakrishna, Satish Kumar and Vijay Mahajan
J. Fungi 2024, 10(6), 413; https://doi.org/10.3390/jof10060413 - 7 Jun 2024
Viewed by 1385
Abstract
Over the past decade, there have been accumulating reports from researchers, farmers, and field extension personnel on the increasing incidence and spread of onion basal rot in India. Onion basal rot disease is mainly caused by Fusarium spp. This study aimed to validate [...] Read more.
Over the past decade, there have been accumulating reports from researchers, farmers, and field extension personnel on the increasing incidence and spread of onion basal rot in India. Onion basal rot disease is mainly caused by Fusarium spp. This study aimed to validate the information on the active prevalence of F. falciforme and F. acutatum causing Fusarium basal rot (FBR) in Maharashtra. A survey was conducted, and the infected plants/bulbs were collected from fields of 38 locations comprising five districts of Maharashtra, namely, Nashik, Aurangabad, Solapur, Ahmednagar, and Pune, in 2023. This disease was prevalent in high-moisture and high-oil-temperature conditions and the symptoms were observed in most of the fields, with the FBR incidence ranging from 17 to 41%. The available data of basal rot incidence from 1998 to 2022 were analyzed, based on which the prevalence of FBR was 11–50%. Tissue from the infected samples of onion bulbs was used for the isolation. The identification was performed based on colony morphology and microscopic features and confirmed through molecular markers using ITS and Tef-1α gene primers. Of the ten Fusarium isolates collected from selected locations, six species were confirmed as F. acutatum and four as F. falciforme. The pathogenicity tests performed with onion seedlings and bulbs under moist conditions proved that both F. acutatum and F. falciforme independently could cause basal rot disease symptoms but with different degrees of virulence. Koch’s postulates were confirmed by reisolating the same pathogens from the infected plants. Thus, the active prevalence of FBR was confirmed in Maharashtra and also, to the best of our knowledge, this is the first report of F. falciforme and F. acutatum causing basal rot of onion independently in Maharashtra, India. Full article
(This article belongs to the Special Issue Management of Postharvest Fungal Diseases of Fruits and Vegetables)
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