Fresh-cut artichokes were treated with cysteine in the form of aqueous solutions of l-cysteine hydrochloride
monohydrate at 0.5% (w/v) normal pH 2.2 adjusted to different pH values with NaOH (from 2 to 7).
General appearance and colour measurements during storage at 5 ◦C showed different degrees of suppression
of darkening on cut surfaces. Cysteine pre-treatments caused an increase in the yellow index
(b* value) of fresh-cut artichokes compared to untreated samples, which was more pronounced at lower
pH (47.9 versus the initial value of 28.3 after 1 day). Artichokes treated at lower pH values also had a
lower appearance score and higher PPO activity than artichokes treated at higher values, closer to neutrality.
Starting from 3 days of storage a negative correlation between solution pH and PPO activity was
also observed, that for artichokes treated with cysteine at pH 7 was lower than for control samples.
l-cysteine pre-treatments did not affect total phenolic content and antioxidant activity of fresh-cut artichokes,
which showed an increasing pattern after 8 days. These data may represent an important step in
prevention of browning in fresh-cut artichokes.