Maria Κ. Sakka , Graham Moores , Marina Gourgouta , Mariastela Vrontaki , Christos G. Athanassiou
{"title":"Two peas in a pod: Efficacy of S-methoprene in combination with piperonyl butoxide for the control of different strains of the lesser grain borer, Rhyzopertha dominica (F.) (Coleoptera: Bostrychidae)","authors":"Maria Κ. Sakka , Graham Moores , Marina Gourgouta , Mariastela Vrontaki , Christos G. Athanassiou","doi":"10.1016/j.jspr.2026.102949","DOIUrl":"10.1016/j.jspr.2026.102949","url":null,"abstract":"<div><div>The lesser grain borer, <em>Rhyzopertha dominica</em> (F.) (Coleoptera: Bostrychidae), is one of the most destructive pests of stored cereals worldwide, and resistance to insect growth regulators such as S-methoprene has been documented in several populations. In the present study, we evaluated the effects of S-methoprene alone and in combination with the synergist piperonyl butoxide (PBO) against susceptible (QRD14) and resistant (QRD551) strains of <em>R. dominica</em>. Bioassays were conducted on wheat treated with two concentrations of S-methoprene (0.1 and 0.3 mg/kg for QRD14; 10 and 30 mg/kg for QRD551 and two concentrations of PBO (0.27 and 1.35 g/kg). Treatments were applied under three exposure scenarios: (i) sequential application of S-methoprene followed by PBO with a 5-h interval, (ii) sequential application of PBO followed by S-methoprene with a 5-h interval, and (iii) simultaneous application of both compounds. Adult mortality was generally low in both strains, not exceeding 30 % even after 21 d, although the combination. In contrast, progeny production was almost completely suppressed in QRD14 across all treatments, while in the QRD551 strain, progeny suppression was dose-dependent and strongest when S-methoprene at 30 mg/kg was combined with PBO at 1.35 g/kg. These results demonstrate that progeny suppression, rather than adult mortality, is the key effect of S-methoprene against <em>R. dominica</em>, and that PBO can enhance its efficacy, particularly in resistant populations.</div></div>","PeriodicalId":17019,"journal":{"name":"Journal of Stored Products Research","volume":"116 ","pages":"Article 102949"},"PeriodicalIF":2.7,"publicationDate":"2026-03-01","publicationTypes":"Journal Article","fieldsOfStudy":null,"isOpenAccess":false,"openAccessPdf":"","citationCount":null,"resultStr":null,"platform":"Semanticscholar","paperid":"145925146","PeriodicalName":null,"FirstCategoryId":null,"ListUrlMain":null,"RegionNum":2,"RegionCategory":"农林科学","ArticlePicture":[],"TitleCN":null,"AbstractTextCN":null,"PMCID":"","EPubDate":null,"PubModel":null,"JCR":null,"JCRName":null,"Score":null,"Total":0}
{"title":"Smart sensor and artificial intelligence technologies for postharvest loss reduction and food safety in nutri-cereals","authors":"Neelesh Yadav , Aman Sharma , Divyesh Suvedi , Sonali Khanal , Shivam Sharma , Rachna Verma , Dinesh Kumar , Lukas Peter , Avinash Sharma , Gholamreza Abdi","doi":"10.1016/j.jspr.2026.102962","DOIUrl":"10.1016/j.jspr.2026.102962","url":null,"abstract":"<div><div>Millets, classified as climate-smart Nutri-cereals, are characterized by considerable postharvest losses at a time when the global production of these cereals has been gradually escalating. This review briefs smart sensor technologies ranging from physical, chemical, and optical to biosensors interfaced effectively with machine learning algorithms, DL algorithms for automatic assessment, identification of contamination, as well as predictive forecasts, respectively. Solutions based on operational issues of millet-scaled sensor calibration, along with reduced on-farm applicability of existing lab-based models, will be described. Additionally, a step-wise growth plan for a low-cost, handheld, farmer-friendly sensor will be discussed.</div></div>","PeriodicalId":17019,"journal":{"name":"Journal of Stored Products Research","volume":"116 ","pages":"Article 102962"},"PeriodicalIF":2.7,"publicationDate":"2026-03-01","publicationTypes":"Journal Article","fieldsOfStudy":null,"isOpenAccess":false,"openAccessPdf":"","citationCount":null,"resultStr":null,"platform":"Semanticscholar","paperid":"146077091","PeriodicalName":null,"FirstCategoryId":null,"ListUrlMain":null,"RegionNum":2,"RegionCategory":"农林科学","ArticlePicture":[],"TitleCN":null,"AbstractTextCN":null,"PMCID":"","EPubDate":null,"PubModel":null,"JCR":null,"JCRName":null,"Score":null,"Total":0}
Abdullah G. Alghamdi , Ahmed S. Hashem , Akram S. Alghamdi , Hanan Salman Alyahya , Dina F. Alhashdi , Wafa Mohammed Al-Otaibi , Jazem A. Mahyoub
{"title":"Balancing insect control and quality preservation in stored date fruits using ozone fumigation under semi-commercial conditions","authors":"Abdullah G. Alghamdi , Ahmed S. Hashem , Akram S. Alghamdi , Hanan Salman Alyahya , Dina F. Alhashdi , Wafa Mohammed Al-Otaibi , Jazem A. Mahyoub","doi":"10.1016/j.jspr.2026.102993","DOIUrl":"10.1016/j.jspr.2026.102993","url":null,"abstract":"<div><div>Stored date fruits face persistent postharvest insect pressure that threatens both commodity integrity and market quality, necessitating effective control strategies that do not compromise fruit attributes. This study evaluated ozone fumigation as a dual-function postharvest strategy for suppressing <em>Tribolium castaneum</em> and <em>Oryzaephilus surinamensis</em> while preserving the physicochemical and sensory quality of date fruits under semi-commercial storage conditions. Date fruit piles were exposed to ozone at 500, 700, and 1000 ppm for 5, 7, and 9 h, and insect mortality, feeding performance, growth, metabolic efficiency, progeny production, and commodity weight loss were assessed alongside detailed quality analyses. Ozone fumigation induced concentration- and time-dependent increases in insect mortality, reaching near-complete lethality after prolonged exposure. Beyond acute toxicity, ozone significantly reduced relative growth rate, relative consumption rate, and efficiency of conversion of ingested food, while markedly increasing feeding deterrence and suppressing F<sub>1</sub> progeny production. These biological effects translated into a substantial reduction in insect-mediated weight loss of date fruits. Importantly, ozone treatment did not adversely affect the chemical composition of dates, and only minor changes were observed in selected physicochemical attributes, including pH and water activity, without compromising firmness, color, or overall sensory quality. Correlation and principal component analyses indicated that most physicochemical quality variables clustered separately from bioefficacy metrics, while odor aligned more closely with higher CT intensity, highlighting odor as the main quality constraint during optimization. Overall, the findings demonstrate that ozone fumigation offers an effective, residue-free postharvest disinfestation strategy capable of suppressing stored-product insect populations while maintaining the quality integrity of date fruits.</div></div>","PeriodicalId":17019,"journal":{"name":"Journal of Stored Products Research","volume":"116 ","pages":"Article 102993"},"PeriodicalIF":2.7,"publicationDate":"2026-03-01","publicationTypes":"Journal Article","fieldsOfStudy":null,"isOpenAccess":false,"openAccessPdf":"","citationCount":null,"resultStr":null,"platform":"Semanticscholar","paperid":"147395374","PeriodicalName":null,"FirstCategoryId":null,"ListUrlMain":null,"RegionNum":2,"RegionCategory":"农林科学","ArticlePicture":[],"TitleCN":null,"AbstractTextCN":null,"PMCID":"","EPubDate":null,"PubModel":null,"JCR":null,"JCRName":null,"Score":null,"Total":0}
Kuncan Yu, Shidan Zhang, Xiufang Bi, Chunlei Ni, Xi Cao, Yuanyuan Liu
{"title":"Moisture migration and quality evolution of Stropharia rugosoannulata during hot air and vacuum drying: An LF-NMR approach","authors":"Kuncan Yu, Shidan Zhang, Xiufang Bi, Chunlei Ni, Xi Cao, Yuanyuan Liu","doi":"10.1016/j.jspr.2026.102955","DOIUrl":"10.1016/j.jspr.2026.102955","url":null,"abstract":"<div><div>This study hypothesized that the specific moisture migration patterns during the drying process of <em>Stropharia rugosoannulata</em> are intrinsically linked to the evolution of its physicochemical and nutritional qualities. To test this, the impacts of two drying methods—hot air drying (HAD) and vacuum drying (VD) at 50, 60, and 70 °C—on drying kinetics, color, microstructure, water mobility, and nutrient retention were systematically evaluated, with low-field nuclear magnetic resonance (LF-NMR) employed to elucidate moisture dynamics. Results demonstrated that HAD outperformed VD, exhibiting higher drying rates, less color degradation (smaller ΔE values), and better preservation of microstructure and structural integrity. LF-NMR revealed that free water was effectively removed during drying, with partial conversion to immobilized and bound water, while VD exhibited irregular moisture migration with higher residual water content. The contents of soluble total protein, crude polysaccharides, and phenolic substances decreased with drying time, with HAD showing superior retention of proteins and polysaccharides, while VD better preserved phenolic compounds. Among all treatments, HAD at 60 °C was identified as the optimal condition, demonstrating the smallest color change, minimal shrinkage, the most uniform moisture migration, and the highest crude polysaccharide retention. These findings confirm the intrinsic relationship between moisture migration and quality evolution in <em>S. rugosoannulata</em> during drying, providing a theoretical foundation for optimizing industrial drying protocols to balance efficiency with quality preservation.</div></div>","PeriodicalId":17019,"journal":{"name":"Journal of Stored Products Research","volume":"116 ","pages":"Article 102955"},"PeriodicalIF":2.7,"publicationDate":"2026-03-01","publicationTypes":"Journal Article","fieldsOfStudy":null,"isOpenAccess":false,"openAccessPdf":"","citationCount":null,"resultStr":null,"platform":"Semanticscholar","paperid":"146034610","PeriodicalName":null,"FirstCategoryId":null,"ListUrlMain":null,"RegionNum":2,"RegionCategory":"农林科学","ArticlePicture":[],"TitleCN":null,"AbstractTextCN":null,"PMCID":"","EPubDate":null,"PubModel":null,"JCR":null,"JCRName":null,"Score":null,"Total":0}
Kehan Wang , Shuwei Nian , Yaqian Shi , Ifra Iqrar , Shengming Sun , Yuwen Shi , Yufen Xi , Junqing Bai , Liping Kou
{"title":"E-beam treatment delays postharvest softening in fava beans by suppressing cell wall hydrolases and optimizing membrane lipid composition","authors":"Kehan Wang , Shuwei Nian , Yaqian Shi , Ifra Iqrar , Shengming Sun , Yuwen Shi , Yufen Xi , Junqing Bai , Liping Kou","doi":"10.1016/j.jspr.2025.102923","DOIUrl":"10.1016/j.jspr.2025.102923","url":null,"abstract":"<div><div>Postharvest softening severely limits the shelf life and commercial value of fava beans. This study investigated the efficacy of electron beam irradiation (EBI) at 2.0 kGy in delaying the softening of fava beans and elucidated the underlying physiological and molecular mechanisms. During the 20-day storage period at 4 °C, EBI-treated beans exhibited a 51 % higher hardness index than the control on day 20. This improvement was attributed to the suppression of key cell wall–degrading enzymes, including cellulase (C<sub>x</sub>) and pectin methylesterase (PME). Correspondingly, the expression levels of their respective genes, <em>Vicia faba</em> C<sub>x</sub> gene (<em>Vf C</em><sub><em>x</em></sub>) and <em>Vf PME</em>, were downregulated by 24 % and 18 % on the 20th day, thereby helping to maintain the structural integrity of the cell wall. EBI treatment also helped maintain higher contents of cell wall polysaccharides, including cellulose, pectin, and lignin. Transmission electron microscopy (TEM) revealed that EBI aided maintain plasma membrane–cell wall adhesion and mitochondrial integrity, supporting normal cellular function. Furthermore, EBI optimized the membrane lipid composition: on day 20, the ratio of unsaturated to saturated fatty acids (U/S) in the EBI-treated group increased by 112 %, indicating enhanced membrane stability. In summary, 2.0 kGy EBI delayed softening in fava beans by modulating cell wall integrity and membrane lipid homeostasis. This non-thermal technology presents a promising strategy for the preservation of leguminous vegetables and shows considerable potential for industrial application.</div></div>","PeriodicalId":17019,"journal":{"name":"Journal of Stored Products Research","volume":"116 ","pages":"Article 102923"},"PeriodicalIF":2.7,"publicationDate":"2026-03-01","publicationTypes":"Journal Article","fieldsOfStudy":null,"isOpenAccess":false,"openAccessPdf":"","citationCount":null,"resultStr":null,"platform":"Semanticscholar","paperid":"145748796","PeriodicalName":null,"FirstCategoryId":null,"ListUrlMain":null,"RegionNum":2,"RegionCategory":"农林科学","ArticlePicture":[],"TitleCN":null,"AbstractTextCN":null,"PMCID":"","EPubDate":null,"PubModel":null,"JCR":null,"JCRName":null,"Score":null,"Total":0}
Xinyu Guo , Jian Zhang , Haitao Xiong , Tao Zhang , Ranbing Yang , Xufeng Wang
{"title":"A multi-defect detection framework for sweet potato based on feature fusion and adaptive attention under complex postharvest conditions","authors":"Xinyu Guo , Jian Zhang , Haitao Xiong , Tao Zhang , Ranbing Yang , Xufeng Wang","doi":"10.1016/j.jspr.2025.102937","DOIUrl":"10.1016/j.jspr.2025.102937","url":null,"abstract":"<div><div>Sweet potato, as a major global economic and food crop, often suffers from surface defects due to its complex growth environment and harvesting processes. The long-term mixing of healthy and defective sweet potatoes during storage accelerates the physiological deterioration. This significantly reduces their edible quality and market value. To address this issue, this research presents SP-YOLOv11, a high-performance defect detection method designed to identify and grade four surface conditions of sweet potatoes in complex harvesting environments, including intact skin, minor defects, moderate defects, and severe defects. Specifically, first, a CPPA module is introduced, which employs a multi-branch feature extraction strategy to enhance the model's feature representation and detail-capturing ability. Next, an FDPN module is constructed, which, through multi-scale fusion and feature diffusion mechanisms, improves the adaptability to defects of different scales. Finally, an MSE-Detect module is introduced to focus on the key defect areas of sweet potatoes, further enhancing robustness in agricultural scenarios. To validate the effectiveness, eight ablation experiments are conducted. The results show that SP-YOLOv11 achieves the highest detection accuracy for sweet potato defects, with <em>mAP@</em>0.5 and <em>mAP@</em>0.5:0.95 reaching 98.50 % and 85.60 %, respectively. This research effectively overcomes the challenges of low efficiency, poor accuracy, and high damage rates in traditional defect detection methods. It significantly reduces the spread of diseases and physiological deterioration, while enhancing the post-harvest freshness retention and storage quality of sweet potatoes. The proposed approach provides technical support for their commercial processing and intelligent grading.</div></div>","PeriodicalId":17019,"journal":{"name":"Journal of Stored Products Research","volume":"116 ","pages":"Article 102937"},"PeriodicalIF":2.7,"publicationDate":"2026-03-01","publicationTypes":"Journal Article","fieldsOfStudy":null,"isOpenAccess":false,"openAccessPdf":"","citationCount":null,"resultStr":null,"platform":"Semanticscholar","paperid":"145880499","PeriodicalName":null,"FirstCategoryId":null,"ListUrlMain":null,"RegionNum":2,"RegionCategory":"农林科学","ArticlePicture":[],"TitleCN":null,"AbstractTextCN":null,"PMCID":"","EPubDate":null,"PubModel":null,"JCR":null,"JCRName":null,"Score":null,"Total":0}
{"title":"Effect of thermo-degradation on the thermal stability, antioxidant and sensory properties of lemongrass essential oil during storage","authors":"Maria Paz Corradi , Nicolle Stefani Juncos , Carolina Florencia Cravero Ponso , Rubén Horacio Olmedo","doi":"10.1016/j.jspr.2026.102987","DOIUrl":"10.1016/j.jspr.2026.102987","url":null,"abstract":"<div><div>The objective of this work was to evaluate the modification caused by thermal degradation on the antioxidant activity and essence intensity (EI) of lemongrass essential oil (LEO - <em>Cymbopogon flexuosus</em>). LEO was exposed to a temperature of 60 °C for 60 days, with samples taken every 15 days: EO0, EO15, EO30, EO45 and EO60. The chemical composition (gas chromatography) and sensory analysis for EI were determined. They were applied at 0.02% w/w in vegetable oil as an oxidation substrate, and chemical, volatile and sensory indicators of oxidation were determined. The β-citral/α-citral ratio changed from 1.26 in EO0 to 0.78 in EO60, leading to a decrease in antioxidant efficiency that declined as exposure to thermal degradation increased. The EI decreased considerably in LEO, with a cut-off point being the value of EO30, which has a citral ratio greater than 1.0.</div></div>","PeriodicalId":17019,"journal":{"name":"Journal of Stored Products Research","volume":"116 ","pages":"Article 102987"},"PeriodicalIF":2.7,"publicationDate":"2026-03-01","publicationTypes":"Journal Article","fieldsOfStudy":null,"isOpenAccess":false,"openAccessPdf":"","citationCount":null,"resultStr":null,"platform":"Semanticscholar","paperid":"147394306","PeriodicalName":null,"FirstCategoryId":null,"ListUrlMain":null,"RegionNum":2,"RegionCategory":"农林科学","ArticlePicture":[],"TitleCN":null,"AbstractTextCN":null,"PMCID":"","EPubDate":null,"PubModel":null,"JCR":null,"JCRName":null,"Score":null,"Total":0}
Nileshwari R. Yewle , Kishore C. Swain , Richard L. Stroshine , Sandeep Mann
{"title":"Hermetic bags improve turmeric quality and reduce microbial contamination during long-term postharvest storage","authors":"Nileshwari R. Yewle , Kishore C. Swain , Richard L. Stroshine , Sandeep Mann","doi":"10.1016/j.jspr.2026.102976","DOIUrl":"10.1016/j.jspr.2026.102976","url":null,"abstract":"<div><div>Turmeric (<em>Curcuma longa</em> L.) is a globally traded spice valued for its medicinal, culinary, and industrial uses. Traditional storage methods often lead to microbial spoilage, nutrient loss, and reduced market value. This study evaluated the effectiveness of five hermetic storage bags Purdue Improved Crop Storage (PICS™), GrainPro™, Savegrain®, Ecotact®, and Pro-harvest® compared with a jute bag control, in preserving artificially infested turmeric rhizomes over 11 months under ambient conditions (26–32 °C, 55–75 % RH) at the Central Institute of Post-Harvest Engineering and Technology (CIPHET), Ludhiana, Punjab, India. Each bag type was tested with three replicate bags and each bag contained rhizomes infested with 10 pairs of adult cigarette beetles <em>(Lasioderma serricorne</em>). Physicochemical parameters, including fiber, oleoresin, and ash, were measured, and color changes (ΔE, h<sub>ab</sub>, C∗) were calculated. Microbiological analyses included total plate count, yeast and mold enumeration, and screening for coliforms, <em>E. coli</em>, and Salmonella spp. Hermetic bags, especially PICS and Pro-harvest, retained 15–18 % more oleoresin and 10–12 % more fiber than jute bags. Total plate counts in jute bags reached 18.93 × 10<sup>6</sup> CFU/g, significantly higher than hermetic treatments (3.53–6.5 × 10<sup>6</sup> CFU/g). No coliforms, <em>E. coli</em>, or <em>Salmonella</em> were detected in hermetic bags. Scanning Electron Microscopy (SEM) analysis showed the presence of holes caused by insect activity in rhizomes stored in jute bags. These findings suggest that hermetic bags, especially PICS and Pro-harvest, offer a chemical-free, efficient method for long-term turmeric storage.</div></div>","PeriodicalId":17019,"journal":{"name":"Journal of Stored Products Research","volume":"116 ","pages":"Article 102976"},"PeriodicalIF":2.7,"publicationDate":"2026-03-01","publicationTypes":"Journal Article","fieldsOfStudy":null,"isOpenAccess":false,"openAccessPdf":"","citationCount":null,"resultStr":null,"platform":"Semanticscholar","paperid":"146188123","PeriodicalName":null,"FirstCategoryId":null,"ListUrlMain":null,"RegionNum":2,"RegionCategory":"农林科学","ArticlePicture":[],"TitleCN":null,"AbstractTextCN":null,"PMCID":"","EPubDate":null,"PubModel":null,"JCR":null,"JCRName":null,"Score":null,"Total":0}
{"title":"Genetic dissection of storage pest resistance against Rhyzopertha dominica (F.) in wheat backcross introgression lines (BILs)","authors":"Pooja Rani , Abhishek Pandey , Guru PN , Beant Singh , Palvi Malik , Deepika Narang , Achla Sharma , Parveen Chhuneja , Tanu Sri , Neha Gupta , Dhanashree Mhatre , Satinder Kaur","doi":"10.1016/j.jspr.2026.102986","DOIUrl":"10.1016/j.jspr.2026.102986","url":null,"abstract":"<div><div>Wheat, a vital staple crop, suffers substantial post-harvest losses due to storage pests, particularly <em>Rhyzopertha dominica</em>. In this study, 73 backcross introgression lines (BILs), developed from the cross between <em>Syn14135</em>/<em>BWL4444</em>, were evaluated for resistance to <em>R. dominica</em> and utilized to map quantitative trait loci (QTLs) associated with this resistance. Three parameters viz. adult emergence, number of damaged grains, and grain weight loss were recorded at 30, 60, and 90 days after infestation, with all showing a consistent linear increase over time. Ten BILs exhibited high levels of resistance, with PN410, PN372, and PN266 showing strong and stable performance across all recorded parameters. All BILs, including the parents, were genotyped using a 35K Axiom SNP array to identify markers associated with resistance. Inclusive composite interval mapping (ICIM) detected four QTLs on chromosomes 4D, 7A, and 7D. Notably, <em>QDg.pau-4D/QGwl.pau-4D</em> on chromosome 4D showed a pleiotropic effect, contributing to both number of damaged grains and grain weight loss. Furthermore, <em>QAe.pau-7A</em> and <em>QGwl.pau-7D</em> were identified as high-confidence loci associated with resistance. Candidate genes underlying these QTLs included <em>cytochrome P450s (CYPs)</em>, <em>serine/threonine-protein kinases</em>, <em>NAC SECONDARY WALL THICKENING PROMOTING 3</em>, and <em>glutathione S-transferases</em>, many of which are known to play roles in disease, pest and insect resistance in wheat and other crops. This study elucidates the genetic mechanisms underlying storage pest resistance in BILs and identifies key genomic regions and resistant lines that serve as valuable resources for breeding wheat varieties with improved post-harvest protection and reduced storage losses.</div></div>","PeriodicalId":17019,"journal":{"name":"Journal of Stored Products Research","volume":"116 ","pages":"Article 102986"},"PeriodicalIF":2.7,"publicationDate":"2026-03-01","publicationTypes":"Journal Article","fieldsOfStudy":null,"isOpenAccess":false,"openAccessPdf":"","citationCount":null,"resultStr":null,"platform":"Semanticscholar","paperid":"146188058","PeriodicalName":null,"FirstCategoryId":null,"ListUrlMain":null,"RegionNum":2,"RegionCategory":"农林科学","ArticlePicture":[],"TitleCN":null,"AbstractTextCN":null,"PMCID":"","EPubDate":null,"PubModel":null,"JCR":null,"JCRName":null,"Score":null,"Total":0}