Maria Concetta Strano

Researcher at Council for Agricultural Research and Economcs (CREA), Research Centre for Olive, Citrus and Tree Fruit, Acireale (Catania), Italy. My research focuses on postharvest management of fresh fruit, particularly Citrus fruit, and fresh-cut products, through the use of safer and eco-friendly solutions such as: alternative strategies to chemically synthesized fungicides; development of adequate postharvest-handling technologies for fruit treatments and cold storage; non-destructive methods for fruit quality evaluation, with the aim to preserve natural quality after harvest, to reduce decay and physiological disorders, and to extend shelf-life of fresh fruits and fresh-cut produces. Moreover my expertise rely on the detection, isolation and diagnosis of fungal Citrus pathogens and on the application of "Cold treatment" for the export of pigmented orange fruit (Tarocco oranges), towards some overseas markets where plant quarantine regulations requires post-harvest treatments to eliminate the presence of insects that are of quarantine significance (i.e. Ceratitis capitata Wiedemann). Currently research activity focuses on the i) development of new antimicrobial edible coatings and packaging for fresh fruit storage; ii) early detection of fruit biotic and abiotic alterations; iii) field treatments by natural biostimulant; iv) postharvest treatments by GRAS compounds.