Ten years of amino acid research at post-harvest: What is known so far? What comes next?

Abstract

Current information on the use of amino acids (AA) as a post-harvest treatment is barely over a decade old. In recent years, some alternative functions to protein structuring have been unravelled, and their possible mechanisms of action have been discussed up to date. Only 16 of the 20 protein AA have been studied, and, among these, some AA have been part of only one study. Therefore, the information to date remains somewhat limited. Listed here are the several important researches on the use of AA, at post-harvest, in whole or minimally processed fruits and vegetables. The effects of various AA derivatives, including much of the existing information on D-isomer amino acids (D-AA) were considered, highlighting the current legislation on the use of AA, taking into account the selection and use of high-purity AA over mixtures for application in the commercial chain, in addition to justifying their use over other frequently applied substances. This is the first known study to compile suggestions for the use of AA in commercial post-harvest stages.