Effect of Whey Protein Edible Coating Incorporated with Mango Peel Extract on Postharvest Quality, Bioactive Compounds and Shelf Life of Broccoli

Round 1

Reviewer 1 Report

Dear Authors,

I am honored to be selected as a reviewer for the manuscript entitled: "Effect of Whey Protein Edible Coating Incorporated with Mango Peel Extract on Postharvest Quality, Bioactive Compounds and Shelf-Life of Broccoli Fresh-Cuts during Refrigerated Storage" by Nesren Elsayed, Ashwak Abdel-moneim Hassan, Suzy M. Abdelaziz, Emad A Abdeldaym and Omaima Darwish.

The aim of the research presented in this manuscript was to evaluate edible coatings based on whey protein concentrate and mango peel extract on the shelf life, physicochemical and microbial properties of minimally processed broccoli preserved at 5 ± 1 ° C and 80% RH for 28 days.

The subject of the research is in line with the guidelines of sustainable agriculture. The research results are interesting and contribute to the improvement of food quality. In terms of methodology, the research is carried out correctly and the results are presented very clearly. The chapter Discussion has been written in an interesting way. The summary is factual.

I believe that the research presented in this manuscript is amenable to publication in the journal Horticulturae. Before that, however, this manuscript needed some minor corrections:

1) I suggest the Authors to consider shortening the title of the work. In my opinion, it is enough: "Effect of Whey Protein Edible Coating Incorporated with Mango Peel Extract on Postharvest Quality, Bioactive Compounds and Shelf-Life of Broccoli".

2) I also recommend shortening the chapter Abstract, especially the part dealing with the discussion of the results.

3) Keywords should be in alphabetical order and should not duplicate words appearing in the title of the manuscript.

4) L 24 - why explain the WPC and MPE abbreviations for the second time in the Abstract?

5) Introduction - the Authors wrote: "research on the effectiveness of mango peel extract (MPE) on edible coatings is limited" please briefly describe what you have researched so far.

6) L 100 - the Latin name should be written in italics.

7) Plant Material - is it possible to write briefly about the cultivation conditions of the studied cultivar of broccoli?

8) Table 1, 4 and 5 - please explain WPC and MPE abbreviations in the title of the table. The tables and figures should be understandable without having to look for an explanation of the abbreviations in the text of the manuscript.

9) Figure 9 - please explain in the title Figures the abbreviations: WPC, MPE, T = 0 days and T = 28 days.

10) The manuscript is very poorly adapted to the template of the Horticulturae journal, please correct it.

Having considered the above comments, I recommend the Horticulturae Editorial Board to consider publishing this manuscript.

Author Response

Please open the attached file where the responses to all comments suggested by reviewer are existed in the attached word file.

Author Response File: Author Response.docx

Reviewer 2 Report

In my opinion, this work can be suitable for Horticulturae and contains some novelty. However, there are several points that must be improved before it can be considered for publication.

Major concerns:

1. The order of the materials and methods is not consistent with the order of the results. The manuscript needs to be re-organized.

2. The phenolics were measured in mango peel but not in broccoli. The results in broccoli are specially important and, as indicated in the introduction, have relevant value. I encourage the authors to measure the differences in the contents of some phenolics in broccoli.

3. How many time the experiments were repeated? The deviation in the figures seem to low according to the used methods.

4. The discussion section needs a paragraph comparing this coating with other coatings based on mango peel extracts. Relevant references, such as 10.1021/acsomega.1c02011, 10.1007/s13399-020-01064-7, 10.1016/j.fpsl.2020.100577, 10.1111/jph.13130, 10.1016/j.fbio.2021.100977 and 10.1016/j.ijbiomac.2021.10.131, need to be added.

5. No physical property of the coating was measured, which is an important gap in this study. I encourage the authors to improve this part.

6. The article contains numerous typing mistakes and English problems that need to be addressed. Below, there is a list with some mistakes (not all):

- The meaning of WPC is only indicated in the abstract but not in the text.

- Line 100 Brassica must be in italics.

- p-, o- (in coumaric acid) must be in italics.

- Some of the strain names are in italics but they should not.

- It should be p-hydroxybenazoic acid.

- The numbers in H3PO4 should be as subscript.

- The abbreviation of liters should be capital letter (example, mL).

- In line 134, and should not be in italics.

- "8" should be as subscript in line 136.

- In some lines, there is a space before the celsius degrees, but not in other lines.

Author Response

please open the attached file where the responses to all comments suggested by reviewer are existed in the attached word file.

Author Response File: Author Response.docx

Reviewer 3 Report

The manuscript is written with clear understanding of the project addressed. However, there are major concerns that need to be addressed to enhance the quality of the manuscript. My specific comments are as follows:

Abstract:

Too long. Simplify by mentioning main finding.

Introduction:

L74: “Milk proteins, such as casein and whey proteins (WP) have several important physical qualities…” Add citation

Add on literatures on application of mango peels as edible coating

Based on your objectives, please compare how your study is different from those that have already been published

 

Materials and Methods:

How many broccoli samples used?

 

Results and discussion:

L479: “it can be observed that the WPC/MPE 3% and WPC/MPE 1% coating materials significantly inhibited the rate of bacterial proliferation compared to the uncoated samples.” In what way?

Table 4: Spell out acronym for ND. Check for other tables too

L544: “Several investigators suggested using edible film /coating materials to improve the quality and extend the shelf life and safety…” add on literatures on these

Instead of mentioning the results, the authors should justify/explain the findings

Conclusions:

Add recommendation for future studies.

General comments:

Please check the reference styles and grammar of the manuscript.

Author Response

please open the attached file where the responses to all comments suggested by reviewer are existed in the attached word file.

Author Response File: Author Response.docx

Round 2

Reviewer 2 Report

The authors have addressed most of my indications. For this reason, I recommend the acceptance of the manuscript.