Modeling the synergistic antibacterial effects of honey characteristics of different botanical origins from the Sahara Desert of Algeria.

Hadda Laallam,Taha Menasria,Haroun Chenchouni,Rokia Hammoudi,Soumia Hadjadj,Mohamed S Mouzaoui,Samia Bissati,Larbi Boughediri

doi:10.3389/fmicb.2015.01239

Abstract

Background: Honey has multiple therapeutic properties due to its composition with diverse components.Objectives: This study aims to investigate the antimicrobial efficacy of Saharan honeys against bacterial pathogens, the variation of honey floral origins, and its physicochemical characteristics.Materials and Methods: The antimicrobial activity of 32 samples of honey collected from the Algerian Sahara Desert was tested on four bacteria; Bacillus subtilis, Clostridium perfringens, Escherichia coli, and Staphylococcus aureus. The botanical origin of honeys and their physicochemical properties were determined and their combined antibacterial effects were modeled using a generalized linear mixed model (GLMM).Results: Out of the 32 study samples, 14 were monofloral and 18 were multifloral. The pollen density was on average 7.86 × 106 grains/10 g of honey, water content was 14.6%, electrical conductivity (EC) was 0.5 μS/cm, pH was 4.38 ± 0 50, hydroxymethylfurfural (HMF) content was 82 mg/kg of honey, total sugars = 83%, reducing sugars = 71%, and the concentration of proline = 525.5 ± 550.2 mg/kg of honey. GLMM revealed that the antibacterial effect of honey varied significantly between bacteria and floral origins. This effect increased with increasing of water content and reducing sugars in honey, but it significantly decreased with increase of honey EC. E. coli was the most sensitive species with an inhibition zone of 10.1 ± 4.7 mm, while C. perfringens was the less sensitive. Honeys dominated by pollen of Fabaceae sp. were most effective with an overall antimicrobial activity equals to 13.5 ± 4.7 mm.Conclusion: Saharan honeys, of certain botanical origins, have physicochemical and pollinic characteristics with relevant potential for antibacterial purposes. This encourages a more comprehensive characterization of honeys with in vivo and in vitro investigations.

Highlights

In recent years, pathogenic microorganisms have developed multiple drug resistance due to the abundant and wide spared use of antimicrobial drugs that were commonly used in human medicine (Al-Waili et al, 2011; Noori et al, 2013)
At the scale of pollinic composition, honeys dominated by Fabaceae sp. pollen contained less water (WC = 12.2%), while those dominated by Astragalus gyzensis were the most moisturized with Water content (WC) = 15.8 ± 0.5%
The physicochemical parameters of multifloral honey were intermediate compared to other honeys except for pollen density where the maximum was recorded with 14.83 × 106 grains/10 g of honey

Summary

Introduction

Pathogenic microorganisms have developed multiple drug resistance due to the abundant and wide spared use of antimicrobial drugs that were commonly used in human medicine (Al-Waili et al, 2011; Noori et al, 2013). Even with the broad spectrum of some antibacterial agents, the choice of most suitable remains relatively limited due to the development of bacterial resistance, breakthrough infections, and ever-increasing therapeutic problem (Shahid et al, 2008). Antimicrobial substances originated from natural resources have been widely exploited for this purpose, with a specific focus of studies on a specific product “Honey” due to a long tradition of use within various medical and food systems (Lusby et al, 2005; Al-Waili et al, 2011). Honey has multiple therapeutic properties due to its composition with diverse components

Objectives

Methods

Results

Discussion

Conclusion