Abstract:
Short-time gas stimulation could induce resistance in fruits and vegetables, prolonging their shelf life and improving their quality during storage. To investigate the effect of high carbon dioxide(CO
2) short stimulation on keeping green color and preservative quality, the oilseed rape color, yellowing index, chlorophyll content, respiratory intensity, ethylene release, polyphenol oxidase (PPO) peroxidase (POD), weight loss rate, hardness, Vitamin C (V
C) content, soluble solids content (SSC) and sensory quality were investigated during 20 d storage at 4±0.5 ℃. Results showed that the high-concentration & short-time CO
2 treatment could effectively maintain the overall appearance quality of oilseed rape, delayed the occurrence of yellowing, increased chlorophyll content (
P<0.05), and inhibited the increase of the yellowing index. On the 20th day of storage, the total chlorophyll content of 50% CO
2, 70% CO
2, and 90% CO
2 was 10.85%, 17.46%, and 25.08% higher than the control group, respectively. Meanwhile, the CO
2 stimulation treatment significantly weakened the respiratory intensity and ethylene release of oilseed rape during storage and inhibited the activity of PPO and POD. Furthermore, short-time CO
2 treatment delayed the increase of weight loss rate and the decrease of hardness, maintained high V
C content and SSC and greatly improved the score of sensory quality. On the whole, the 90% CO
2 treatment possessed the best and most obvious effect for oilseed rape greening, extending the storage period to 20 d compared to the shorter shelf life (2~3 d) at room temperature. The study provides a theoretical basis for the development of oilseed rape green preservation technology.