Thursday, 25 February 2021

Effectiveness of Crude Extract from Candle Brush (Senna didymobotrya) Leaves against Aspergillus niger in Reduction of Post-Harvest Losses in Tomatoes (Lycopersicum esculantum) | Chapter 4 | Current Research in Agricultural and Food Science Vol. 4

Background: Senna didymobotrya grows naturally in East Africa and is widely used due to the presence of various phytochemicals such as alkaloids, terpenoids, anthraquinones, tannins, saponins, phenols and flavonoids to treat microbial infections in African populations. Antimicrobial properties against bacteria such as Staphylococcus aureus and Bacillus cereus were also found to contain extracts from the candle brush.

Objective: To determine the effectiveness of crude candle brush extract (Senna didymobotrya) leaves against Aspergillus niger in reducing post-harvest losses in tomatoes, this study was performed.

Methods: A fully randomized two-treatment design was used, each repeated six times. In a review of this. The dried leaves were ground into a fine powder and extracted with 100 percent methanol using the Soxhlet unit. Aspergillus niger was tested for the minimum inhibitory concentration (MIC) and the minimum fungicidal concentration (MFC) of the extract. The shelf life of tomatoes was determined by spraying 0.4 g/ml of the extract reconstituted in water and the total viable counts were further analyzed at three-day intervals and tested for mould growth, color changes and odors as indicators of spoilage.

Results: 22 g of crude extract was obtained after extraction from dried leaves MIC and MFC of crude methanol extract against Aspergillus niger were 0,04 g/ml. The shelf life of the handled tomatoes was 14 days, compared to 9 days for the untreated tomatoes. T-test findings at (P 0.05) Based on the total viable counts, a substantial difference was seen between the treated and untreated samples.

Conclusion: The crude candle brush extract inhibited the growth of fresh tomatoes with Aspergillus niger and also extended the shelf life of the tomatoes for 14 days. In order to determine the market acceptability of tomatoes, further studies should be performed.

Author (s) Details

Dr. L. G. Njue
Department of Food Science, Nutrition and Technology, University of Nairobi, Kenya.

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