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Combining UV-C treatment with biocontrol yeast to control postharvest decay of melon

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Abstract

Significant losses in harvested melon can be directly attributable to decay fungi. In the present study, the use of UV-C treatment combined with biocontrol yeast, Pichia cecembensis, was evaluated for their ability to control postharvest decay of melon fruits after they were artificially inoculated with Fusarium oxysporum and Alternaria alternata. Natural infection of fruit was also assessed. As a stand-alone treatment, UV-C or P. cecembensis significantly reduced Fusarium rot and Alternaria rot, and also the level of natural infection on melon fruit, relative to the untreated control. The combination of UV-C or P. cecembensis, however, provided a superior level of decay control on artificially inoculated and naturally infected fruit, compared to either treatment alone. None of the treatments impaired fruit quality. Integrating the use of UV-C treatment with biocontrol yeast has potential as an effective method to control postharvest decay of melon.

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Acknowledgments

This work was supported by grants from Chongqing University of Arts and Sciences (Z2011RCY02), the Scientific Research Fund of the Chongqing Education Commission (KJ1401116), the Ministry of Science and Technology of China (2013GA81102), and the Chongqing Key Discipline Construction of Forestry.

Conflict of interest

The authors declare that they have no competing interests.

Compliance with ethical standards

This article does not contain any studies with human participants or animals.

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Authors and Affiliations

  1. College of Forestry & Life Science/Institute of Special Plants, Chongqing University of Arts and Sciences, 319 Honghe Road, Yongchuan, 402160, China

    Ke Huang, Yong Zou, Jie Luo & Yiqing Liu

  2. Chongqing Engineering Research Center for Special Plant Seedlings, 319 Honghe Road, Yongchuan, 402160, China

    Ke Huang, Yong Zou, Jie Luo & Yiqing Liu

  3. Garden and Flower Engineering Research Center of Chongqing Colleges, 319 Honghe Road, Yongchuan, 402160, China

    Ke Huang, Yong Zou, Jie Luo & Yiqing Liu

Authors
  1. Ke Huang
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  2. Yong Zou
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  3. Jie Luo
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  4. Yiqing Liu
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Correspondence to Yiqing Liu.

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Responsible editor: Philippe Garrigues

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Huang, K., Zou, Y., Luo, J. et al. Combining UV-C treatment with biocontrol yeast to control postharvest decay of melon. Environ Sci Pollut Res 22, 14307–14313 (2015). https://doi.org/10.1007/s11356-015-4687-0

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  • DOI: https://doi.org/10.1007/s11356-015-4687-0

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