A team of researchers from the Faculty of Agronomy of the University of Buenos Aires (FAUBA) is studying how to enhance the effect of secondary metabolites on broccolis, such as glucosinolates, to serve a segment of the population that requires more nutritious and healthy food (such as children, the elderly, and sick people) and to increase the crop's post-harvest shelf life.
“In general, when the crops go through a period of water stress, the activity of the secondary metabolism increases to balance the metabolic system. It is a group of substances that the plant produces to repair itself and that also benefit human health, as they have antioxidant and neuroreparative effects, among other things,” said Christian Krizaj, professor of Horticulture at the FAUBA. "We can control how much we give the crop at different times and measure the extent to which the stress doesn't cause the yields to decrease so much, and at the same time increase the concentration of secondary metabolites."
In these five years of work, FAUBA teachers, headed by the professor in charge of the Horticultural Chair, Diana Frezza, focused on knowing the particular characteristics of the crop, calculating the optimal irrigation doses, and the most appropriate times to limit its access to water.
A longer shelf life
Another aspect that the FAUBA researchers seek to improve is post-harvest quality. The researchers reported that the part of the broccoli we consume is an inflorescence and that these organs have a very high degradation rate, much higher than that of other crops, such as lettuce and potatoes, for example. That is why they need to increase their useful life so that it reaches consumers in good condition. "The increased presence of secondary metabolites can also improve the quality of post-harvest broccoli, so that it doesn't degrade so quickly once between the time it is harvested, marketed, and consumed," Krizaj said.
In the trials, researchers concluded that, during storage at low temperatures (5° C), the stressed crop had a better post-harvest for up to 14 days, compared to the crop that was managed without restrictions. When the storage was carried out at room temperature (14.7° C), the stressed culture remained within certain quality parameters, while the control group's post-harvest shelf life didn't last a week.
The FAUBA team has been conducting a series of trials since 2014 seeking to stress the crop by restricting the amount of water it receives in its different growth stages. With this strategy, they have already achieved some positive results, although they continue researching to obtain broccolis with higher nutraceutical qualities and better yields, which would also allow using water more efficiently.
Source: supercampo.perfil.com
