Accepted Article Impact of Infrared Treatment on Quality and Fungal Decontamination of Mung Bean (Vigna radiata L.) Inoculated with Aspergillus spp. Maninder Meenu a , Paramita Guha b , Sunita Mishra* c a AcSIR-Central Scientific Instruments Organisation, Sector 30C, Chandigarh, India. 160030 b CSIR-Central Scientific Instruments Organisation, Delhi Centre, India. 110012 c CSIR-Central Scientific Instruments Organisation, Sector 30C, Chandigarh, India. 160030 *Corresponding author E-mail: sunita_mishra@csio.res.in Telephone no. 0172-2651722 Ext: 289 Abstract BACKGROUND Mung bean is a rich source of protein, carbohydrates and fiber content. It also exhibits a high level of antioxidant activity due to the presence of phenolic compounds. Aspergillus flavus and Aspergillus niger are the two major fungal strains associated with stored mung bean that lead to post-harvest losses of grains and also cause serious health risks to human beings. So there is a need to explore an economical decontamination method that can be used without affecting the biochemical parameters of grains. RESULTS It was observed that infrared (IR) treatment of mung bean surface up to 70˚C for 5 min at an intensity of 0.299 kW m -2 lead to complete visible inhibition of fungal growth. Scanning electron microscopy revealed that surface irregularities and physical disruption of spores coat are the major reasons behind the inactivation of IR treated fungal spores. It was also This article has been accepted for publication and undergone full peer review but has not been through the copyediting, typesetting, pagination and proofreading process, which may lead to differences between this version and the Version of Record. Please cite this article as doi: 10.1002/jsfa.8773 This article is protected by copyright. All rights reserved.