Early detection of postharvest pathogens in fruit and vegetable products using phytopathological approaches and non-invasive monitoring systems.

The postdoctoral research position aims to developand validate approaches for the early detection ofpathogens responsible for postharvest alterationsand decay in fruit and vegetable products intendedfor fresh consumption. Activities will include theselection of commodities and pathogens of plantpathology interest, the setup of inoculation andmonitoring assays under controlled conditions, theevaluation of early stages of infection anddeterioration, and the collection of biological datauseful for distinguishing healthy, infected oraltered products at an early stage. Relationshipsbetween pathogen development, symptomappearance, decay processes and signals detectablethrough innovative non-invasive monitoringsystems will also be analysed.