Effect of Thermotherapy on the Development of Anthracnose on Post-harvest Mangoes of the Amelie Variety in Côte d’Ivoire

The post-harvest management of anthracnose is a major challenge for the stakeholders in mango sector. This constraint is linked to lake of an effective product and prohibition of several chemical molecules in the post-harvest fruit treatment. The present study aims to evaluate the level of efficiency of hot water in the control of Colletotrichum gloeosporioides (Penz), the causal agent of mango anthracnose var. 'Amelie' under in vitro and in vivo test conditions and its effect on some physico-chemical parameters of the fruit. It is part of the research for alternative solutions to the chemical method of controlling mango anthracnose after harvest. The germination inhibitory capacity of C. gloeosporioides spores of water at 45°C and in contact with the fruit during 4 soaking times (5; 10; 15 and 20 min) was evaluated. In addition, the effect of hot water on the development of anthracnose symptoms of artificially inoculated fruits and on their quality was tested. Soaking times of 15 and 20 min effectively reduced (11.98±2.72 and 17.79±3.18%) the germination of C. gloeosporioides (Penz) spores after 18 hours of observation. Soaking the mangoes in 45°C hot water for 20 min showed low infection rates (22.00 ± 4.01%) with small lesion sizes (0.12 ± 0.03 cm). However, not all treatments influenced the physico-chemical parameters of the treated var. ‘Amelie’ mangoes. In sum, hot water at 45°C did not provide 100% protection of the fruits for a long time, but can be used in combination with other methods.