Effects of putrescine treatment on the quality attributes and antioxidant activities of 'Nam Dok Mai No.4' mango fruit during storage

This research is aimed at investigating the benefits of the exogenous application of putrescine on the postharvest quality and antioxidant activities of 'Nam Dok Mai No.4' mango. Mangoes harvested at commercial maturity were dipped into 1, 2, and 4 mmol/L putrescine (PUT) for 20 min while distilled water was used as the control. Treated fruit were stored at 14 °C for 9 days and then transferred to storage at 25 °C for 9 days. The 2 mmol/L PUT proved to be the most effective in keeping mango fruit quality intact during fruit ripening. Fruit hardness and titratable acidity (TA) were observed to be higher in treated fruit. The PUT treatment also caused a reduction in weight loss and soluble solids content (SSC). Moreover, 2 mmol/L PUT treated fruit exhibited the maximum superoxide dismutase (SOD), catalase (CAT), guaiacol peroxidase (GPOX), ascorbate peroxidase (APX) and glutathione reductase (GR) activities and total antioxidant contents of fruit during storage. These findings suggest that exogenous application of 2 mmol/L PUT could be an effective treatment for prolonging the storage life and enhancing antioxidant activities of 'Nam Dok Mai No.4' mango after harvest.