Honey bee collected pollen and beebread of Zea mays: determination of bioactive constituents and health benefits

Abstract

Bee products are known since ancient times for their nutritional value and beneficial effects. The present study was carried out to evaluate the phytochemical composition and therapeutic potential of bee pollen and beebread. Broth dilution method was used to observe the in vitro antibacterial activity. For in vivo antioxidant activities, BALB/c mice were divided into six groups; Gp1 was given normal saline only, Gp2 was injected intraperitoneally with Salmonella enterica serovar Typhimurium at 2×104 CFU/ml, Gp3 was administrated orally with bee collected pollen of Zea mays (250mg/kg bw) only, Gp4 was treated with the bee collected pollen of Z. mays (250mg/kg bw) in Salmonella infected mice, Gp5 was administrated orally with beebread of Z. mays (250mg/kg bw) only and Gp6 was treated with the beebread of Z. mays (250mg/kg bw) in Salmonella infected mice. The results obtained in the study suggested that various bioactive constituents were present in bee pollen and beebread and these phytochemical constituents were responsible for the antibacterial and antioxidant efficacy of these studied bee products. Beebread was found to possess high activity as compared to bee pollen reflecting its high polphenolic composition. Hence, it could be inferred that bee pollen could be seen as a potential source for designing a drug against S. typhimurium.