• The Plant Pathology Journal
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• v.35 no.5
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• pp.425-436
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• 2019

Botrytis cinerea, a major phytopathogenic fungus, has been reported to infect more than 200 crop species worldwide, and it causes massive losses in yield. The aim of this study was to evaluate the inhibitory abilities and effects of Bacillus amyloliquefaciens RS-25, Bacillus licheniformis MG-4, Bacillus subtilis Z-14, and Bacillus subtilis Pnf-4 and their culture filtrates and extracts against the gray mold caused by B. cinerea on postharvest tomato, strawberry, and grapefruit. The results revealed that the cells of Z-14, culture filtrate of RS-25, and cells of Z-14 showed the strongest biocontrol activity against the gray mold on the strawberry, grape, and tomato fruit, respectively. All the strains produced volatile organic compounds (VOCs), and the VOCs of Pnf-4 displayed the highest inhibition values. Based on headspace solid-phase microextraction in combination with gas chromatography-mass spectrometry, esters accounted for the largest percentage of the VOCs produced by RS-25, MG-4, Z-14, and Pnf-4 (36.80%, 29.58%, 30.78%, and 36.26%, respectively). All the strains showed potent cellulase and protease activities, but no chitinase activity. RS-25, Z-14, and MG-4, but not Pnf-4, grew on chrome azurol S agar, and an orange halo was formed around the colonies. All the strains showed biofilm formation, fruit colonization, and lipopeptide production, which may be the main modes of action of the antagonists against B. cinerea on the fruit. This study provides the basis for developing natural biocontrol agents against the gray mold caused by B. cinerea on postharvest fruit.

• Journal of Biosystems Engineering
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• v.40 no.4
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• pp.409-416
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• 2015

Purpose: This study evaluates a new banana bulk packaging method under the real transport conditions of Sri Lanka. Methods: A field evaluation of optimized 8-mm thick Styrofoam sheets used as the cushioning material was applied. A trial transport was conducted from Thambuttegama to Colombo using a medium-sized open truck, with banana leaves as the control material. Data were recorded at the farmer, transporter, retailer, and consumer stages of the supply chain. Mechanical damage, physiological loss in weight, fruit firmness, total soluble solids, ripeness index, visual quality ratings, and the physical damage index of the bananas were measured at each stage. A cost-benefit analysis was also conducted for both packaging methods. Results: The 8-mm styrofoam sheets significantly reduced (p < 0.05) the mechanical damage from 26.3% to 12.9% compared to the conventional method for long-distance transport, and the physiological loss in weight showed a decrease of 2.88%. The loss of firmness of the fruits followed a simmilar pattern for both methods until reaching the retailer, but at the consumer was significantly higher (p < 0.05) for the control. However, the physical damage index at the retail stage for the control showed symptoms of physical injury, whereas the bananas transported using the cushioning materials exhibited only minor symptoms. Further, the visual quality of the fruits after transport from the farmer to the consumer was preserved, which is one of the main factors affecting consumer preference and retail price. The proposed method increases the profit margin by 51.2% for Embul bananas owing to the reduced postharvest losses. Conclusion: The 8-mm thick Styrofoam sheets reduced the physical damage to the bananas, with the quality parameters maintained at the prefered level. Moreover, profits may be increased.

• The Plant Pathology Journal
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• v.39 no.5
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• pp.522-527
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• 2023

The occurrence of postharvest kiwifruit rot has caused great economic losses in major kiwifruit-producing countries. Several pathogens are involved in kiwifruit rot, notably Botryosphaeria dothidea, and Diaporthe species. In this study, a recombinase polymerase amplification (RPA) assay was developed for the rapid and sensitive detection of the pathogens responsible for posing significant threats to the kiwifruit industries. The RPA primer pairs tested in this study were highly specific for detection of B. dothidea and D. eres. The detection limits of our RPA assays were approximately two picograms of fungal genomic DNA. The optimal conditions for the RPA assays were determined to be at a temperature of 39℃ maintained for a minimum duration of 5 min. We were able to detect the pathogens from kiwifruit samples inoculated with a very small number of conidia. The RPA assays enabled specific, sensitive, and rapid detection of B. dothidea and D. eres, the primary pathogens responsible for kiwifruit rots in South Korea.

• Korean Journal of Medicinal Crop Science
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• v.21 no.5
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• pp.334-341
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• 2013

Studies were carried to evaluated the influence of storage method by temperatures and fillers on yield and quality of seed rhizome in turmeric. Seed rhizome was stored at styrofoam box filled with rice hull and sand (3:1) or vermiculite for 30, 60 and 90 days at different temperatures (5, 10 and $15^{\circ}C$. compared to traditional method (rhizome only). Parameters were obtained for weight loss, cold injury, percentage of decayed in stored rhizome during storage periods. Also, the germination, growth pattern and yield from stored rhizome has been investigated. It was confirmed that storage of turmeric in stored with filled with vermiculite helps in prevention of rhizomes from microbial and fungal attack. The storage of rhizomes in styrofoam box without any filler at low temperature below $10^{\circ}C$. is not advocated due to heavy losses weight and decayed in management of postharvest for turmeric rhizome. Germination percentage, growth pattern and yield was maximum for rhizomes stored at styrofoam box filled with vermiculite for 90 days at $15^{\circ}C$. The paper outlines a brief attempt to assess the efficacy of non-chemical methods including optimal storage method (temperature and filler) of control of decay and moisture losses during storage of turmeric.

• Preventive Nutrition and Food Science
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• v.3 no.3
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• pp.295-301
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• 1998

Potential applications of irradiation technology inpostharvest handling of agricultural products have been documented over the past five decades. The biological effects of ionizing radiation on food were demonstrated to have the potential both of reducing the storage losses by controlling spoilage microoraganisms, insects, to have the potential both of reducing the storge losses by controlling spoiliage microorganisms, insects, sprouting and ripening, and of improving the hygienic quality of raw and processed products. Food irradiation is recognized as a physical and cold process using gamma-rays from radioisotope sources and electron-beam from the accelerator. As one of the technologies or techniques for preserving and improving the safety of food, irradiated technology has been approved in some 40 countries for more than 200 individeual items of foods and of these about 30 countries including Korea are commerically utilizing this technology. Although limited quantities of irradiated foods are available in the market now, the proper uses of this renewed technology will offer great possibilities not only for increasing the availability of postharvest agricultural products, thereby contributing to price stabilization in the off-season, but also for reducing reliance on chemicals used for sanitary and quarantine requirements. This paper deals with biological actions of ionizing radiation and its potential applications in the agri-food industry from the international point of view.

• Proceedings of the Korean Society for Agricultural Machinery Conference
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• 1996.06c
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• pp.539-546
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• 1996

The physical condition of rapeseed delivered to fat industry plants plays a significant role in the formation of the qualitative features of the raw material for oil production and, consequently , of the oil itself. Rapeseed is stored in silos , frequently for months, before it is subjected to processing. During the long storage, the conditions of the seed cover is very important, as the seed cover provides natural protection of the seed against the effect of the environment. Seeds with damaged seed cover are more easily affected by mildew, and the rate of chemical processes. Deteriorating the quality of oil contained in the cotyledons is faster in such seeds. Cracked seed covers facilitates also the growth and development of microorgaism. So as rapeseed damage occurring inthe course of harvest and the post-harvest processing have a negative effect of the quality and quantity of oil the sees contain. The study presented here was aimed at examining the typical process of purcha ing and handling of rapeseed in fat industry plants, in the aspect of the occurrence of mechanical damage to the seeds. Special attention was paid to the condition of rapeseed immediately after combine harvesting : next , the successive stages of technological handling of the seed were examined. observing the operation parameters of the particular machinery and equipment in order to identify those operations which caused deterioration in the quality of the material (sees). Seed samples were taken successively from the following the hopper, prior to cleaning , after cleaning , prior to drying , after drying, from dry rape silo. The total level of damage increased through the handling. The content of unusable contaminants had the tendency to decrease in the successive operations. though the actual values still exceeded levels permitted by standards. The study allow to indicate the operation fo postharvest technological process, which cause the most seed damage as well as gave quantita ive description of the losses occurred.

• Food Science and Preservation
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• v.23 no.5
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• pp.623-630
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• 2016

Inappropriate storage of fresh-cut onions may result in losses of good quality. To understand storage conditions for shelf-life and quality of fresh-cut onions, The effect of packing type and storage temperature on the quality of fresh-cut onions was evaluated. Onions stored at $0^{\circ}C$ for 2 months were peeled off after removing root and shoot parts. Each three peeled onions were packed in a polyethylene film (PE, $50{\mu}m$) or in a polyethylene/polypropylene film (PE/PP, $100{\mu}m$) with vacuum treatment (70 cmHg) and stored at different temperatures (4, and $10^{\circ}C$) for 21 days. The following analyses were examined to evaluate the quality of fresh-cut onions: microbial population, surface color, titratable acidity and pH, respiration rate, and sensory quality. Fresh-cut onions stored at $4^{\circ}C$ showed less aerobic and coliform bacterial population than those stored at $10^{\circ}C$ during observation periods. Fungal populations of fresh-cut onions packed in PE film stored at $10^{\circ}C$ increased significantly after 13 days. E. coli was not detected in all treatments during whole storage periods. Surface colors of fresh-cut onions were not affected by packing type and storage temperature, however, color difference (${\Delta}E$) of fresh-cut onions in PE/PP film stored at $10^{\circ}C$ was significantly higher than those of other treatments. Titratable acidity of fresh-cut onions was not affected by packing type and storage temperature. However, pH of fresh-cut onions packed in PE film stored at $10^{\circ}C$ increased gradually over the whole storage period. Fresh-cut onions packed in PE film showed higher $CO_2$ and less $O_2$ concentrations at $10^{\circ}C$ than those at $4^{\circ}C$. The sensory quality of fresh-cut onions was significantly affected by packing type and storage temperature after 13 days. Particularly, vacuum treatment in PE/PP film showed better sensory quality than that of PE film package at the same storage temperature. It was concluded that vacuum treatment and storage at $4^{\circ}C$ could be effective to prolong the quality of fresh-cut onions up to 21 days.

• Agricultural and Biosystems Engineering
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• v.7 no.1
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• pp.1-7
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• 2006

A need exists to monitor and control the localized high temperatures often experienced in solar grain dryers, which result in grain cracking, reduced germination and loss of cooking quality. A verified finite element model would be a useful to monitor and control the drying process. This study examined the feasibility of the finite element method (FEM) to predict temperature distribution in solar grain dryers. To achieve this, an indirect solar grain dryer system was developed. It consisted of a solar collector, plenum and drying chambers, and an electric fan. The system was used to acquire the necessary input and output data for the finite element model. The input data comprised ambient and plenum chamber temperatures, prevailing wind velocities, thermal conductivities of air, grain and dryer wall, and node locations in the xy-plane. The outputs were temperature at the different nodes, and these were compared with measured values. The ${\pm}5%$ residual error interval employed in the analysis yielded an overall prediction performance level of 83.3% for temperature distribution in the dryer. Satisfactory prediction levels were also attained for the lateral (61.5-96.2%) and vertical (73.1-92.3%) directions of grain drying. These results demonstrate that it is feasible to use a two-dimensional (2-D) finite element model to predict temperature distribution in a grain solar dryer. Consequently, the method offers considerable advantage over experimental approaches as it reduces time requirements and the need for expensive measuring equipment, and it also yields relatively accurate results.

• Mycobiology
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• v.45 no.4
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• pp.240-254
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• 2017

Cereal grains are the most important food source for humans. As the global population continues to grow exponentially, the need for the enhanced yield and minimal loss of agricultural crops, mainly cereal grains, is increasing. In general, harvested grains are stored for specific time periods to guarantee their continuous supply throughout the year. During storage, economic losses due to reduction in quality and quantity of grains can become very significant. Grain loss is usually the result of its deterioration due to fungal contamination that can occur from preharvest to postharvest stages. The deleterious fungi can be classified based on predominance at different stages of crop growth and harvest that are affected by environmental factors such as water activity ($a_w$) and eco-physiological requirements. These fungi include species such as those belonging to the genera Aspergillus and Penicillium that can produce mycotoxins harmful to animals and humans. The grain type and condition, environment, and biological factors can also influence the occurrence and predominance of mycotoxigenic fungi in stored grains. The main environmental factors influencing grain fungi and mycotoxins are temperature and $a_w$. This review discusses the effects of temperature and $a_w$ on fungal growth and mycotoxin production in stored grains. The focus is on the occurrence and optimum and minimum growth requirements for grain fungi and mycotoxin production. The environmental influence on aflatoxin production and hypothesized mechanisms of its molecular suppression in response to environmental changes are also discussed. In addition, the use of controlled or modified atmosphere as an environmentally safe alternative to harmful agricultural chemicals is discussed and recommended future research issues are highlighted.

• KOREAN JOURNAL OF CROP SCIENCE
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• v.42 no.1
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• pp.95-103
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• 1997

This experiment was carried out to obtain the basic information necessary to establish suitable postharvest handling techniques and to keep high quality of the sweet(Danok 2), supersweet(Cooktail 86) and waxy(Chalok 1) corn which are mainly consumed as vegetable in Korea. Vegetable corns were cooled with ice fragments in the insulation box immediately after harvest and stored in low temperature warehouse at 0 to 2$^{\circ}C$. During the 15 days short-term storage, changes of chemical components were compared with those of uncooled corns. The losses of moisture in kernels were as high as 7.4 to 24.4％ in uncooled corns while those of ice cooled corns increased 0.4 to 0.5％ of their weight. The ratio of pericarp and alcohol insoluble solid(AIS) content increased as the storage days prolonged in all treatments but increasing rates were much higher in uncooled samples. On the other hand, the total sugar loss during storage was the least in supersweet corn when they were cooled with ice fragments in insulation box. After 5 days storage, the ice cooled samples showed the highest free amino acid contents compare to those of uncooled and stored at room temperature (25 to 3$0^{\circ}C$) or low temperature warehouse, and ${\gamma}$-aminobutylic acid (GABA) which was known as a fuctional amino acid was detected in all three kinds of vegetable corns.