Euphorbia antysyphilitica wax extraction and study of its application as edible nutraceutical film on avocados to improve their shelf life quality

In this work, Euphorbia antysyphilitica wax was extracted with the aim of use it in edible coatings. The plant was collected in an area located in the Coahuila state, Mexico, at the height of 45 kilometers from 57 Saltillo-Monclova road. Samples were translated to the laboratory where they were washed with water stream to remove the residual. The wax was extracted using a steel container by immersion in an acid solution, leading to 90° C then floated white foam on the surface of the container that was collected and then dried in a room temperature, the product obtained was subjected to an acid solution, later this impurities in the wax precipitated separating them from the wax, then they were dried for wax separated from the solution, after the wax was melted and washed 3 times with hot water. The wax had a lighter color, a melting point of 70°C, the yield extraction of wax was 4%. The wax was characterized by infrared spectroscopy and nuclear magnetic resonance of hydrogen and carbon. In this study, edible film with natural wax and antioxidant were elaborated to assess their effect on the quality of shelf life of avocado. Antioxidant additives were ellagic and gallic acid and aloe vera juice. The samples were: covered without antioxidants and fruits without cover. Avocados were stored at a controlled temperature of 5°C by 4 weeks and subsequently underwent 2 weeks at room temperature, throughout this period the physico-chemical parameters quality in the shelf life of fruits were measured, to evaluate the effect of the edible films and to assess the antifungal activity of the edible covers. The data found in this study indicate that edible covers Euphorbia antysyphilitica wax and antioxidant additives affect significantly the in the quality of avocado (p ≤0.05). However, the best treatment that maintained the quality of the fruit was covered with ellagic acid which succeeded in improving the quality of shelf life of fruits avocado to a greater extent than other treatments, even using the cover control improved the quality of shelf life considerably. These edible coatings represent an attractive alternative to maintaining the quality fruits and raise their nutritional quality.