Polyamines in cold storage: impact of postharvest spermidine on strawberry quality

Reducing post-harvest losses of strawberries, which quickly spoil after harvest and have a limited storage life, is crucial in minimizing product wastage. The research aimed to investigate the impact of spermidine application at varying concentrations (0, 1.0, 1.5, and 2.0 mM) on post-harvest fruit quality characteristics and biochemical composition. Spermidine application protected the fruits by preventing changes in weight loss, decay rate, soluble solids content (SSC), titratable acidity (TA), pH ratios and respiration rate. Malic acid was dominant in strawberry fruits, and that the application of 2 mM spermidine (559.80 mg/100 g) compared to the control group (483.55 mg/100 g) largely preserved malic acid content. Chlorogenic acid was phenolics compound that had the highest content, and spermdine doses significantly preserved chlorogenic acid during storage. The study revealed that 2 mM spermidine application was the most effective dose and that it could be used at this concentration to preserve post-harvest fruit quality and reduce biochemical changes in strawberries.