Impact of Postharvest Sodium Nitroprusside Application on Physicochemical Quality of Apple Fruit cv. ‘Golden Delicious’ during Cold Storage

Arshad, Mousa; Nazarideljou, Mohammad Javad

doi:10.22059/ijhst.2025.388136.1003

Impact of Postharvest Sodium Nitroprusside Application on Physicochemical Quality of Apple Fruit cv. ‘Golden Delicious’ during Cold Storage

Document Type : Research paper

Authors

Mousa Arshad

Mohammad Javad Nazarideljou

Department of Horticultural Science, Mahabad Branch, Islamic Azad University, Mahabad, Iran.

10.22059/ijhst.2025.388136.1003

Abstract

This study examines the effects of sodium nitroprusside (SNP) on ‘Golden Delicious’ apples, focusing on biochemical and quality changes during cold storage (0 ± 1°C; 90–95% relative humidity). Apples were treated with SNP at concentrations of 0, 5, and 7 mM and assessed at 90, 150, and 210 d post-storage. The results demonstrated that SNP significantly influenced peroxidase activity, total phenolic content, vitamin C levels, fruit firmness, and ethylene production. Over extended storage, activities of catalase and peroxidase, soluble protein content, reducing sugars, and ethylene production increased, whereas total phenolics, vitamin C, titratable acidity, and fruit firmness decreased. Higher SNP concentrations were associated with enhanced fruit firmness between 90 and 150 days of storage. Notably, the 5 mM SNP treatment increased fruit firmness by 24.5% after 210 days, whereas the 7 mM treatment showed no significant difference compared to the control. SNP-treated apples exhibited improved visual quality, with 5 and 7 mM SNP treatments mitigating vitamin C loss and reducing titratable acidity. These findings indicate that SNP treatment may reduce ethylene production, delay senescence, and enhance fruit quality.

Keywords

Ethylene

Fruit quality

Storage life

Vitamin c