Effects of chitosan from Cunninghamella elegans on virulence of post-harvest pathogenic fungi in table grapes (Vitis labrusca L.)

This study aimed to obtain chitosan (CHI) from Cunninghamella elegans cultivated in corn step liquid (CSL)-based medium under optimized conditions and to assess the efficacy of the obtained CHI in inhibiting Botrytis cinerea and Penicillium expansum in laboratory media and when applied as a coating on table grapes (Vitis labrusca L.). Moreover, the influence of CHI-based coatings on several physical, physicochemical and sensory characteristics of the fruits during storage was assessed. According to the surface response methodology, the best conditions for isolating CHI from C. elegans cultivated in CSL-medium yielded 8.8 g/100 mL at pHs between 5.0 and 5.5 and at 180 rpm. CHI from C. elegans inhibited mycelial growth and spore germination and caused morphological changes in the spores of the tested fungal strains. The CHI coatings delayed the growth of the assayed fungal strains in artificially infected grapes. Applying a CHI coating preserved the quality of grapes, as measured by some physical, physicochemical and sensory attributes, throughout the assessed storage time. These results demonstrate the potential of CHI from C. elegans to control post-harvest pathogenic fungi in fruits, in particular, B. cinerea and P. expansum in table grapes.