Improvement of antioxidant activity and postharvest quality of fresh-cut artichoke by dipping in flavonoid-rich bergamot juice

Artichoke (Cynara cardunculus var. scolymus) is a vegetable highly perishable when it is processed as fresh-cut products due to the related preparation steps which can physically alter it and favour a major risk of contamination and degradation. In this work, for the first time, fresh-cut artichoke heads were dipped in a bergamot juice extract (BE 0.05 % w/v) containing flavonoids with antimicrobial and antioxidant properties (neoeriocitrin, naringin, neohesperidin, peripolin, melitidin and brutieridin), and stored for 9 d at 5 °C. Compared to the controls, and ethanol (1 %) dipped samples, BE-dipped fresh-cut artichokes, showed improved sensory attributes, lower respiration rate and a reduction of Pseudomonas spoilers by 1 log CFU g−1 up to 6 d of storage. Moreover, an increase in antioxidant activity was also observed in BE-dipped samples throughout the storage, putatively related to the added flavonoids (naringin, melitidin, brutieridin), which were retained up to 6 d of storage. The dipping in BE also preserved the organoleptic properties of these samples; indeed, volatile organic compounds (VOCs) profiles of artichoke dipped in BE solution showed a higher content of “green leaves” volatiles. Among these, 1-hexanol, 2-hexen-1-ol, cis-3-hexen-1-ol, hexanal, cis-2-hexenal, were correlated with the sensory attributes of freshness. In conclusion, in this work, a sustainable and innovative strategy based on the dipping of fresh-cut artichokes in BE proposed for the first time has showed to improve the antioxidant value and the shelf-life of the samples, preserving their sensory attributes.