Effect of ⁶⁰Co-γ irradiation treatment on color,flavor and firmness of strawberry fruit during storage

This study evaluated the effect of ⁶⁰Co-γ dynamic irradiation doses(0,1.0,2.0,3.0 and 4.0 kGy)on color,aroma components,total soluble sugar content(TSS)and firmness of strawberry during 4 ℃ cold storage. The results showed that the change with the color and TSS were less obvious by irradiation treatments compared with contrast(CK),2.0 and 3.0 kGy treatments guaranteed color and TSS levels of strawberry during storage(p>0.05).34 fragrant components were detected,which constituted 95.44% of the total area by headspace solid-phase micro extraction(HS-SPME)and gas chromatography-mass spectrometry(GC-MS)detection.⁶⁰Co-γ irradiation treatments below 3.0 kGy presented not significantly effects in contents of characteristic aroma components including ethyl acetate,anoic acid ethylester and hexanoic acid methylester(p>0.05),meanwhile,effective in enhancing the characteristic aroma compounds including butyric acid methylester and 4-methoxy-2,5-dimethyl-3(2H)-furanone(DMMF)of strawberry(p<0.05). The firmness decreased gradually during the storage period. Strawberry treated with 2.0,3.0 kGy had the highest firmness in the late period of storage.⁶⁰Co-γ irradiation treatments at 2.0~3.0 kGy doses could achieve strawberry fruits with an extending shelf-life without compromising its quality.