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Potato is the fourth most consumed crop in the world. More than half of the crop is stored for three to nine months at cold temperatures (3-10 °C) for the fresh and seed market. One of the main causes of fresh potato waste in the retail supply chain is the processing of fungal and bacterial rots during storage. Dry rot is a fungal disease that mainly affects the potato crop during storage and is responsible for 1% of tuber losses in the UK. It is produced by Fusarium spp., such as Fusarium sambucinum and F. oxysporum , which can lead to the accumulation of mycotoxins in the potato tuber. Little is known about the impact of environmental factors on the accumulation of mycotoxins in potato tubers. Understanding the ecophysiology of these fungi is key to mitigating their occurrence under commercial storage conditions. Therefore, this work aimed to elucidate the effect of three different temperatures (5, 10, and 15 °C) and two different water activities (a w ; 0.97, 0.99) on the ecophysiology and mycotoxin accumulation of F. sambucinum and F. oxysporum in a potato-based semi-synthetic medium. The mycotoxin accumulation was then studied in vivo , in potato tubers cultivated under organic farming conditions, stored for 40 days at 8.5 °C. Results showed that higher temperatures and a w enhanced fungal growth, lag time, and mycotoxin accumulation in vitro . Growth rate was 2 and 3.6 times higher when the temperature increased from 5 to 10 and 15 °C, respectively. Six different mycotoxins (T-2, HT-2, diacetoxyscirpenol, 15-acetoxyscirpenol, neosolaniol, and beauvericin) were detected in vitro and in vivo . T-2 was the most abundant mycotoxin detected in vitro , observing 10 6 ng of T-2/g media after 21 days of incubation at 10 °C and 0.99 a w . Due to the long period of time that potato tubers spend in storage, the fluctuations of environmental factors, such as temperature and relative humidity, could promote the development of fungal rot, as well as mycotoxin accumulation. This could result in important food and economic losses for the potato market and a threat to food safety., Competing Interests: The authors declare no conflicts of interest.

The commercialisation of fresh-cut artichokes with optimal quality and appearance and a maximum shelf-life is a great challenge for the artichoke market. The use of different anti-browning agents has been previously studied; however, their effect is still limited. Therefore, the objective of this study is the evaluation of the effect of L-cysteine and, in combination with a mixture of essential oils components (eugenol, thymol and carvacrol) on browning, quality and bioactive compounds of fresh-cut artichokes stored for 9 days at 2 °C. Four different treatments were applied to 'Blanca de Tudela' fresh-cut artichokes: cysteine and cysteine with 75, 150 and 300 µL of the essential oils components (EOs) mixture. After 2, 4 and 9 days of storage, physicochemical parameters (weight loss, colour, respiration rate) and functional (total phenolic content, antioxidant activity) were studied. A descriptive sensorial analysis was also carried out to evaluate sensory attributes. Results showed that the application of cysteine and 150 µL of EOs displayed the lowest browning and highest antioxidant properties, as well as the best quality and sensory parameters. The use of this post-harvest treatment on fresh-cut artichokes would result in a natural and eco-friendly solution to improve artichoke quality and shelf-life.

In the northern hemisphere countries, artichoke harvest occurs in winter months; consequently, they are exposed to cold temperatures. This can lead to frost injury, such as triggering the blistering of the cuticle and detachment of outer bracts, which eventually could display brown or black discolouration. This can cause major economic and production losses. As far as we know, no literature is available about this problem in artichokes. Thus, the main aim of this study was to evaluate the effect of total phenolic content and the antioxidant potential of 'Blanca de Tudela' artichokes in their capacity to tolerate frost injury when they are exposed to low temperatures. Several factors were analysed, including floral head order, weight and size of artichokes, total phenolic content, phenolic profile and total antioxidant activity. Results showed that tertiary heads, which are the smallest in size, exhibited a greater amount of total phenolic content and antioxidant activity. As a result, these characteristics offered enhanced protection to the artichoke against frosting temperatures. In contrast, the largest artichokes, especially the primary heads, were more susceptible to suffer frostbite. Therefore, artichokes with robust antioxidant systems, characterized by elevated phenolic content, are crucial to reduce their susceptibility to frost injury.