Biochemical analysis of mature date palm fruit astringency: Towards sustainable fruit quality improvement
Jaseena PULLANIYIL, Dali FRANCIS, Navjot KAUR, Mohamed EL MAHI, Osama SOURANI, Zienab F.R. AHMED
Abstract. Date palm (Phoenix dactylifera L.) is one of the oldest cultivated fruit trees and an essential crop in arid and semiarid regions. In the United Arab Emirates, premium cultivars are harvested at three stages of maturity: Bisr, Rutab, and Tamer, for local and international markets. Optimizing harvest and postharvest handling is critical to ensuring fruit quality and minimizing losses; however, the mechanisms underlying date fruit de-astringency remain poorly understood. This study examined the impact of CO₂ treatment and the ethylene action inhibitor 1-methylcyclopropene (1-MCP), on ripening, marketability, storage life, and fruit quality of the Neghal cultivar at the Bisr stage. Treatments were evaluated for their effects on tannin removal from the fruit at the mature stage, total soluble solids, firmness, and color. Preliminary results indicate that CO₂ treatment significantly reduced soluble tannin levels, resulting in decreased astringency, with significant positive effects on fruit texture and sensory attributes. These findings provide new insights into the physiological regulation of date fruit ripening and highlight the potential of targeted postharvest treatments to enhance fruit quality and market value.
Keywords
Date, De-Astringency, Ethylene, Tannins, Antioxidant Enzymes
Published online 6/20/2026, 4 pages
Copyright © 2026 by the author(s)
Published under license by Materials Research Forum LLC., Millersville PA, USA
Citation: Jaseena PULLANIYIL, Dali FRANCIS, Navjot KAUR, Mohamed EL MAHI, Osama SOURANI, Zienab F.R. AHMED, Biochemical analysis of mature date palm fruit astringency: Towards sustainable fruit quality improvement, Materials Research Proceedings, Vol. 67, pp 622-625, 2026
DOI: https://doi.org/10.21741/9781644904176-83
The article was published as article 83 of the book Climate Action and Sustainability
Content from this work may be used under the terms of the Creative Commons Attribution 3.0 license. Any further distribution of this work must maintain attribution to the author(s) and the title of the work, journal citation and DOI.
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