Immunomodulatory Ability of Honey Enriched with Propolis (Published)
A well-developed immune system of the organism, which, among other things, arises as a result of a healthy lifestyle, is a prerequisite for a healthy and quality life. Natural food products, primarily honey and other bee products, greatly contribute to the proper development of the body’s immune response to the harmful effects of foreign substances. Honey and other bee products are a valuable and rich source of biologically active substances. They have been used for centuries in traditional medicine, due to their wide range of antibacterial, antiradical, antioxidant and anticancer effects, as well as their supportive effect in the prevention and treatment of many diseases. Consumption of honey contributes to the improvement of immunity and enriches the human diet with many valuable nutrients and bioactive substances. Bioactive substances, including polyphenols, are organic chemical compounds naturally present in honey. Polyphenols are important secondary metabolites of plants that are transferred to honey along with nectar, pollen or propolis. Several studies have confirmed the immunomodulatory role of the basic phenolic compounds present in honey. For the purpose of our research, a total of 21 samples of honey and 10 samples of alcoholic propolis extract were collected, mostly from the Federation of Bosnia and Herzegovina. Based on the obtained results, it is clear that honey itself is a rich source of antioxidants in the diet, but that the addition of propolis significantly increases its antioxidant power. The addition of propolis to honey significantly increased the antioxidant activity of all analyzed samples. After the addition of propolis, the highest antioxidant activity was again shown by a sample of forest honey from the area of Bihać, Una-Sana Canton (Š5) and its antioxidant activity is 1143.96 µmol Fe (II) / L. The lowest antioxidant activity after the addition of propolis was shown by the meadow sample of honey from Sanski Most, Una-Sana Canton, (L21), 462.71 µmol Fe (II) / L.Based on the presented results, it is clear that after the addition of propolis in the analyzed honey samples there was a significant increase in the concentration of polyphenols by an average of 11.96%.
Citation: Stipe Ćelan, Aldina Kesić, Nadira Ibrišimović Mehmedinović, Aida Crnkić, Almir Šestan (2022) Immunomodulatory Ability of Honey Enriched with Propolis, European Journal of Food Science and Technology, Vol.10, No.1, pp.1-19
Keywords: antioxidant acivity, honey, immunomodulatory, poliphenols, propolis
Optical Activity, Total Phenolic Content and Color Intensity of Nectarian Honey and Honeydew (Published)
Honey is an extraordinary product from beehives that produce bees from nectar and other sugary substances originating from different plants.43 Worldwide honey is considered to be part of traditional medicine. 44,45,46 Nectar honey bees are made from nectar, a sweet solution secreted by the plant glands of nectarine. They can be monofloral and polyfloral. Honeydew most often originates from coniferous (fir, spruce, pine, larch) and deciduous (oak, beech, linden) trees. In this study, the analysis of optical activity, total polyphenol content, antioxidant activity and color of nectar honey and honeydew species was performed. The results show that due to the higher content of fructose, nectar honey rotates the plane of polarized light to the left, it shows negative optical activity, whereas because of the higher content of oligosaccharides, mainly melecitosis and erlose, the honeydew turns light to the right, ie. shows positive optical activity. These studies confirmed the high correlation coefficient between antioxidant activity of honey, color and total polyphenols content. The analyzed honeydew honey samples have on average a higher content of polyphenols, and an overall antioxidant capacity than nectar honey samples.
Keywords: color, honey, honeydew, nectarian, optical activity, phenolic content
Black Seed Oil as an Additive to Honey (Published)
Nigella sativa is a well-known plant with rich history and religious heritage. Black seed is mostly composed of aminoacides, fat acids, proteins, sterols, different essential metals, carbohydrogens, fats and water. Black seed oil is coloured yellow, which implicates presence of yellow pigments (carotenoids). Oxidative stability of black seed oil can last up to 55 hours, considering that oil with more polyphenols is more stable. In this study was determined antioxidative capacity of black seed oil, honey and black seed oil and honey mixture using FRAP and DPPH methods. Methanol was used as solvent. Results show that adding black seed oil to honey increases antioxidative capacity of honey.
Keywords: antioxidative capacity, black seed oil, honey