Microbiological analyses
Fruit (15 g) was blended with sterile peptone solution (135 mL 0.01 g/100 g), and serial dilutions were made. One mL of each dilution was plated onto Petri dishes containing plate count agar (Difco) for total aerobic counts (mesophilic microorganisms), violet red bile agar (Difco) for total coliform counts, and potato dextrose agar (Bioxon) for mold and yeast determination. Plates were incubated at 37 °C for 48 or 24 h for total aerobic counts and coliforms, respectively. For molds and yeast, plates were incubated at 25 °C for 5 d. Results were expressed as colony forming units per g of fruit (CFU/g; Mali and Grossmann 2003; Yurdug¨ul 2005). Each test was performed in triplicate.