Biosynthetically produced glucose oxidase immobilized silver nanoparticle bioconjugate treatment improves the shelf life of mango fruit: an innovative method towards food safety and sustainability

Mango is one of the most popular fruits all over the world due to its attractive taste, odor, and nutritional properties. As more people become aware of the many health benefits linked with fruits, their consumption of veggies and fruits has increased. However, the challenge that faces the fresh-cut market is maintaining the food's freshness for a long time after it has been cut. The fruit loses its quality fast as a consequence of an infection with several different fungal diseases. These infections cause deterioration while the fruit is being stored or marketed and reduce the overall quality of the fruit. For the last few decades, there has been an increase in fascination with the creation of materials that have the potential to create films and antimicrobial activities, both of which help to promote food security and storage stability. In this context, the present research aims to develop methods for extending the post-harvest shelf life of mango using silver nanoparticles. Leveraging the functional properties of glucose oxidase, our innovative antimicrobial strategy for prolonging the shelf life of fruit is based on the production of a fine coating of hydrogen peroxide at the food's surface. This layer acts as a barrier against the growth of microorganisms (GOx). After the enzyme was extracted from Aspergillus niger and processed, it was immobilized on nanostructures of silver and then placed in a buffer to create a spray solution of silver nanoparticles (AgNPs). The spray showed significant prolonging in the shelf life of mango, as evident from fruit quality parameters such as pH, DPPH activity, TSS, and weight loss. A notable difference was observed in these parameters when compared with control and treated fruits. In fact, we have arrived at a novel technique for this purpose.