Crude Honey Research Articles

System Mapping of the Production and Value Chain to Explore Beekeeping Potential in Southwest Ethiopia.

Ethiopia has a high potential for the production of honey and other apiary products due to its ideal agroecology. This potential is, however, not yet well utilized due to weak production and valorization systems. The study analyzed beekeeping systems and their honey value chain to detect the barriers and to explore ways to better exploit the existing potential. Descriptive statistics, a SWOT and PESTEL matrix, and system mapping were utilized for analysis. Ethiopian beekeeping is still dominated by traditional production systems, followed by modern and transitional systems, differing in types of beehives and the average amount of honey yield. The combined SWOT-PESTEL analysis revealed challenges like a limited supply and high cost of modern beehives, shortage of credit, absence of a honey marketing legal framework, pest and predator attacks, absconding, and uncontrolled application of agrochemicals. Opportunities include the globally increasing demand for honey, availability of good investment policy, conducive agroecology, and support from NGOs. The less productive techniques of smallholder beekeepers' crude honey production for local beverage making affected the good use of the potential and minimized its contribution to the local and national economy. On the contrary, strengthening private investors and cooperatives towards the production of fully and semi-processed honey impacted the utilization of the potential positively.

Honey proteins regulate oxidative stress, inflammation and ameliorates hyperglycemia in streptozotocin induced diabetic rats

BackgroundDiabetes Mellitus (DM) poses a serious health problem worldwide and several inflammatory mediators are involved in the pathogenesis of this disease. Honey composed of various constituents which have been proven to have immunomodulatory and anti-inflammatory properties. The aim of this study is to investigate the in vitro and in vivo effects of Ziziphus honey and its isolated crude proteins in modulation of immune system and inflammation involved in the pathogenesis of diabetes.MethodologyThe proteins from Ziziphus honey were isolated by ammonium sulfate precipitation and estimated by Bradford method. In vitro anti-inflammatory activities were evaluated by inhibition of reactive oxygen species (ROS) from phagocytes via chemiluminescence immunoassay and nitric oxide (NO) by Griess method. Cytotoxicity was evaluated by MTT Assay. The comparative effect of oral and IP routes of honey and isolated proteins was observed in streptozotocin (STZ) induced diabetic male Wistar rats. qRT-PCR technique was utilized for gene expression studies.ResultsThe honey proteins suppressed phagocyte oxidative burst and nitric oxide (NO) at significantly lower concentrations as compared to crude honey. The isolated proteins showed promising anti-inflammatory and hypoglycemic effects along with maintenance of body weight of rodents via both oral and IP routes, with significant down-regulation of inflammatory markers TNF-α, IL-1β, IFN-γ, iNOS, caspase 1, Calgranulin A (S100A8) and NF-κB expression in diabetic rats.ConclusionThe isolated honey proteins showed better immunomodulatory and therapeutic potential at significantly lower doses as compared to crude honey.

Demonstration and participatory evaluation of apiculture technologies in Sidama national regional state, Ethiopia

Demonstration and Participatory evaluations of improved beekeeping technologies were conducted in Loka Abaya and Hawassa Zuriya woredas of Sidama National Regional state with the objective of demonstrating improved beekeeping technologies & strengthen research extension farmer’s linkage in beekeeping technology generation and transfer. Demonstration and evaluations of frame and transitional hive was conducted by forming farmers research groups (FRGs) at 4 peasant association (PAs) of selected district; from the demonstration an average of 25.5kg semi-extracted and 10.5 kg crude honey per hive/annum was harvested using after and before using improved technologies respectively and bees wax purification was also demonstrated on farmers field. Partial budget analyses implied that adoption of improved beekeeping technologies make small holder beekeepers more profitable than traditional practice. Therefore, all the demonstrated and evaluated technologies have been recommended for the mandate area to further promote the technologies in to the areas where there is a gap in utilizing and disseminating the technologies.

Demonstration and participatory evaluation of apiculture technologies in Sidama National Regional state, Ethiopia

Demonstration and Participatory evaluations of improved beekeeping technologies were conducted in Loka Abaya and Hawassa Zuriya woredas of Sidama National Regional state with the objective of demonstrating improved beekeeping technologies & strengthen research extension farmer’s linkage in beekeeping technology generation and transfer. Demonstration and evaluations of frame and transitional hive was conducted by forming farmers research groups (FRGs) at 4 peasant association (PAs) of selected district; from the demonstration an average of 25.5 kg semi-extracted and 10.5 kg crude honey per hive/annum was harvested using after and before using improved technologies respectively and bees wax purification was also demonstrated on farmers field. Partial budget analyses implied that adoption of improved beekeeping technologies make small holder beekeepers more profitable than traditional practice. Therefore, all the demonstrated and evaluated technologies have been recommended for the mandate area to further promote the technologies in to the areas where there is a gap in utilizing and disseminating the technologies.

Functional food promotes digestive functions and healthy growth of animals nurtured in confinement

In the study, the growth pattern, morphometric and morphological changes in the gastrointestinal tract of growing male and female Sprague-Dawley rats fed crude honey (CH)-supplemented diets as measures of nutrient utilization, digestive functions and healthy growth were investigated. Thirty-five suckling (7-day old male and female) rats were fed CH either as low (10mLkg-1 BW) or high (20mLkg-1 BW) dose daily via stomach tube for 14 days, while the control group was gavaged with distilled water. Rats were kept with their dams to nurse freely between gavages. On weaning, CH was mixed with commercial rat feed as low (20%) or high, 50% (volume/weight, v/w), while 20% (v/w) tap water was added to the control diet. The feed intake of honey-fed male rats and control (infant: 6 – 10g; adult:31 – 38g) was significantly higher (p < 0.05) than their high dose-diet mates (infant: 5 – 8g; adult: 31 – 38g). All the rats were killed at 13 weeks old for gross and microscopic measurements of the abdominal viscera. Grossly, there were no significant differences (p ≥ 0.05) in the relative lengths (%BW) and weight: length ratio (g cm-1 ) of the small and large intestines in both sexes. Crude honey increased the absolute and relative weights of the caecum (1.73 ± 0.05g; 0.38 ± 0.02%BW) and pancreas (2.52 ± 0.11g; 0.55 ± 0.03%BW), with significant influence (p<0.05) in the male rats. In addition, dietary inclusion of CH at low dose enhanced intestinal villi growth in height (84.0 ± 4.0µm) and width (25.2 ± 1.5µm). Dietary supplementation with crude honey also enhanced body weight gain of male rats (495.52 ± 8.98g) and females (242.52 ± 6.87g), improved abdominal organs' functional size: liver (10.92 ± 0.32g; 2.72 ± 0.13%BW); spleen (1.25 ± 0.06g; 0.27 ± 0.02%BW), devoid of pathological changes, as shown by liver histomorphology (1.2 ± 0.3) and normal hepatocellular architecture thereby conferring nutritional and health benefits on animals nurtured in confinement.

Pattern of Histopathological Alterations in N-methyl-N-Nitrosourea (MNU) Induced Breast Cancer in Female Sprague Dawley (SD) Rats Treated with Crude Honey

Natural products are becoming primary investigative molecules creating hope for finding new powerful classes of anticancer agents for breast cancer. One of the most remarkable of these is honey. To explore the mechanism of action of any anticancer agent the initial step is to analyse its effect in the histopathological tissue section. This study was designed to describe the histopathology of N-methyl- N-nitrosourea (MNU) induced breast cancer in Sprague Dawley rat (SD rats) treated with crude honey. Female rats were distributed into 4 groups: Group0 (normal), Group1 (MNU control), Group2 and 3: Tualang and Manuka honey-treated, respectively. Rats were sacrificed and histopathology of both non-treated and treated tumours was done. Lower histological grade, infrequent combination histologic pattern (p<0.001), prominent cytoplasmic vacuolization (p<0.001), aggregates of atypical macrophages (p<0.001) and lesser necrosis (p= 0.005) were major outcomes in treated cancers. This data will aid in the histopathological interpretation of honey-treated breast cancer model and future anticancer study of honey.

Antioxidant and antibacterial activities of multiflora honey extracts from the Indonesian Apis cerana bee

ObjectivesHoney is an apiary product with various medicinal properties resulting from its bioactive compounds. Here, we aimed to determine the antioxidant and antibacterial properties of the Indonesian Apis cerana honey extracts and their correlation with total phenolic content (TPC) and total flavonoid content (TFC). MethodsWe extracted ethyl acetate-n-hexane and two types of ethanolic extracts from crude honey. Phenols and flavonoid content were calculated using spectroscopy. The antioxidant activity was evaluated using 2,2-diphenyl-1-picrylhydrazyl (DPPH) and ferric ion reducing antioxidant power (FRAP) assays, and it was reflected via the antioxidant activity index (AAI). An agar diffusion test was used to test the antimicrobial activity. ResultsThe ethyl acetate extract of the Karangasem honey provided the highest amount of phenolic and flavonoid content, and the strongest antioxidant activity using DPPH and FRAP assays. The ethanolic honey extracts were active against Bacillus subtilis and Escherichia coli; in this regard, the strongest effect was noticed from the Singaraja honey extract. The positive significant correlations between TPC and AAI were observed in all samples. Similar results also appeared between phenolic and flavonoid compounds and their antibacterial activity in most of the tested samples. ConclusionsIn our study, honey extracts possessed antioxidant and antibacterial activities that were mostly related to the qualitative and quantitative properties of phenols and flavonoids. Geographical origin brought variations in the phytochemical profiles and bioactivities of honey.

Antibacterial Activity of Honey on Staphylococcus aureus, Escherichia coli and Streptococcus pyogenes Isolated from Wounds

Aim: To assess the antibacterial activity of crude honey obtained from Ishielu Local Government of Ebonyi State on pathogenic bacterial species (Staphylococcus aureus, Escherichia coli and Staphylococcus pyogenes) isolated from wounds.
 Study Design: An experimental study which involved a random selection of patients with wound
 Place and Duration of Study: Department of Medical Laboratory Science, Ebonyi State University, Abakaliki, Nigeria, between February 2019 and November 2019.
 Methodology: A total of 50 samples of wound swabs collected from different sites of open wounds were cultured on blood agar, chocolate agar and MacConkey agar. The crude honey was diluted to concentrations ranging from 20% to 100% and the antibacterial activity was carried out by well diffusion method with augmentin used as a control.
 Result: Out of the 50 samples, 43 showed growth of bacterial species isolated, identified and confirmed using standard bacteriological techniques. Staphylococcus aureus (60.5%) was the most frequent isolates, followed by Escherichia coli (27.9%) and Streptococcus pyogenes (11.6%). All the tested bacterial isolates were susceptible to the honey and the number of isolates as well as the diameter of zone of inhibition was positively linearly correlated with increasing concentration of the honey (p= 0.00). At 100% honey, 22 (22.25±0.46 mm) out of 26 Staphylococcus aureus were susceptible as against 8 (4.62±0.31 mm) at 20% honey. The number of Escherichia coli inhibited at 20% honey was 2 (1.96±0.04 mm) out of 12 isolated and at 100%, 7 (19.17±0.31 mm) were inhibited. At 20% honey, no Streptococcus pyogenes was inhibited and at 100%, 4 (21.84±0.15 mm) out of 5 isolated were inhibited.
 Conclusion: Locally produced crude honey may be used as a source of an effective antibacterial agent for wound management.

Comparative Evaluation of the Antibacterial Effects of Honey with Standard Antibiotic on Bacterial Isolates from Wound Infection

Aim: The aim of this study was to compare the antibacterial activities of the Honey against Ciprofloxacin on four bacterial isolates from a wound.
 Study Design: It is a cross sectional comparative and observational study.
 Place and Duration of Study: The study was conducted in Usmanu Danfodiyo University Teaching Hospital (UDUTH), Sokoto State, Nigeria between July 2017 and October 2017.
 Methodology: One hundred and one (101) bacterial wound isolates were collected and identified using the standard microbiological methods of Gram staining and biochemical test. The activity patterns of the Honey concentrations and the standard antibiotic were determined using Kirby-Bauer disc diffusion and Punched Holes techniques. Similarly, minimum inhibitory concentrations (MICs) and minimum bactericidal concentrations (MBCs) of the Honey were determined using Macrobroth dilution technique.
 Results: Out of 101 isolates collected and identified, 33(32.7%) were Staphylococcus aureus, 29(28.7%) Pseudomonas aeruginosa, 21(20.8%) Escherichia coli and 18(17.8%) Proteus mirabilis. Antibacterial activity of honey was observed at 100% and 50% concentrations for S. aureus (10.7±0.13 mm and 8.4±0.16 mm), P. aeruginosa, (11.0±0.45 mm and 7.6±0.26 mm) and E. coli, (11.1±0.61 mm and 7.5±0.55 mm) respectively. Comparison of the inhibitory zone diameters showed that Ciprofloxacin (30.65±0.37 mm) had higher antibacterial activity than the raw honey (10.45±0.51 mm).
 The Minimum inhibitory concentration (MICs) of crude honey on S. aureus was 5%, P. aeruginosa 50%, E. coli 20%, and P. mirabilis 100%, while the minimum bactericidal concentration (MBC) of crude honey on S. aureus was 50%, P. aeruginosa 100%, E. coli 100%, and P. mirabilis was resistant.
 Conclusion: The result obtained from this study established that honey possessed antibacterial activity at 50% and 100% concentrations against S. aureus, P. aeruginosa and E. coli, which indicates that development of inhibition zones, depends on the concentration of the honey used as well as the nature of the tested pathogen. The findings also revealed that ciprofloxacin has higher antimicrobial activity than the type of honey used in this study.

Participatory Improved Beekeeping Technology Demonstration and Evaluation, Daro Labu, Western Hararghe, Oromia Regional state, Ethiopia

Participatory demonstration and evaluations of improved beekeeping technologies were conducted in Daro labu district of West Hararghe zone with major objectives of demonstrating improved beekeeping technologies & strengthen research-extension-farmers linkage in beekeeping technology generation and transfer. Demonstration and evaluations of box & transitional hive with ant protection, bee management and product processing was conducted by forming farmers research groups(FRGs) at 4 peasant association (PAs) of Daro labu district; from the demonstration an average of 25.16kg semi-extracted,12.6kg and 6kg crude honey per hive/annum was harvested using box, transitional and traditional hives with ant protection respectively and bees wax purification was also demonstrated on farmers field. Therefore, all the demonstrated and evaluated technologies have been recommended for the mandate area to further promote the technologies in to the areas where there is a gap in utilizing and disseminating the technologies. DOI : 10.7176/JNSR/9-5-08 Publication date :March 31 st 2019

Assessment of Potential and Constraints of Honey Production in Godere District, Southwest Ethiopia

The study was conducted in Godere district, southwestern Ethiopia to assess the potential, opportunities and constraints in honey production. 120 beekeepers were selected and interviewed from two kebeles using semi structured questionnaire. Participatory discussions with key informant at village levels and Zone and District level bee experts and extension workers were also held to generate primary data. All the interviewed household heads were male headed, with average age of 37.42 years. The average number of traditional beehive holding was 28.4. It was found out that there are two to three honey production seasons in the district. The average productivity of colonies in traditional log beehives was 24.2+9.33. The major opportunities to engage on honeybee beekeeping were long beekeeping experience, existence of huge natural resource that includes honeybee flora, honeybee colonies, high productivity and increasing demand of honey in the area. About 93.25% of their produce (totally crude honey) was sold in nearby markets. 94.4% of respondents sold their honey immediately after harvest, while the remaining 5.6% stored for more than a month. 76.2% of the producers largely sold their honey in the nearest local market, only less than 24% of the respondents transport their honey to Meti town. The price difference between the village market and Meti was as high as 70%. The major honey buyers reported by the producers are the collectors (82.45%) and <i>tej</i> brewers (16.32%) in Godere district. Generally, the honey production system in the area is traditional forest beekeeping with a lot of constraints. Therefore, it needs systematic approach to tackle all the problems in the whole system starting from input supply all along to marketing. Provision of extension services to upgrade knowledge, develop skills and introduction of improved technologies needs due attention.

Sidr Kashmiry honey and its fractions induced apoptosis in hepatocellular carcinoma in vitro

Positive evidence for anticancer activities of honey is growing and the mechanism on how honey has anticancer characteristics is an area of great interest. Honey has been studied in various cancer cell lines for its ability to induce apoptosis, with several mechanisms of action being suggested. This study aims to evaluate the apoptotic activity of the non cytotoxic Sidr Kashmiry honey and its residue of successive fractionation as well as the cytotoxic chloroform-methanol and ethyl acetate fractions against hepatocellular carcinoma cells in vitro. Apoptosis was assessed by DNA fragmentation, diphenyl amine assay, and ultrastructure investigation. Micronuclei test was carried out to assess genotoxicity. Crude honey, residue, ethyl acetate and chloroform-methanol induced apoptosis, however, the residue and ethyl acetate caused high genotoxicity. Non cytotoxic Sidr Kashmiry honey and its cytotoxic chloroform-methanol fraction could be a powerful pro-apoptotic and non-genotoxic anticancer agent.

Discovering potential bioactive compounds from Tualang honey

Tualang honey is well known for its biological activities including as an antioxidant and anti-inflammatory. The compounds contributing to the biological activities are still unknown. Therefore, fractionation was carried out to prepare phenolic-rich extract from Tualang honey using ethyl acetate (EA). EA could recover a wide range of phenolic compounds obtained using column chromatography (CC) and liquid-liquid extraction (LLE) after acid hydrolysis. The yield of the EA fraction from LLE (0.83%) was higher than that from CC (0.39%). The LLE-EA fraction also contained more metabolites, especially organic acids (gluconic acid, succinic acid, hydroxybenzoic acid, hydroxydecanoic acid, abscisic acid, hydroxyoctanic acid), phenolic acids (caffeic acid, salicylic acid) and flavonoids (luteolin, hesperetin, kaempferol, apigenin, 3,7,4′-trihydroxyflavone, naringenin, chrysin, fisetin, vitexin, isoorientin and xanthohumol) as revealed in the liquid chromatography-mass spectrometry analysis. The recovered metabolites enhanced the radical scavenging capacity (free radicals and radical cations), reducing power and prostaglandin inhibition in cyclooxygenase assay. The enhancement was evident from the lower effective concentration of EA fractions than in crude honey and the alcohol-based fractions (methanol and butanol) which were used to remove the sugar components in honey.

Evaluation the Toxicity of Honey Bee Venom on Achroia grisella Developmental Stages

The common control method used to control the lesser wax moth A. grisella was fumigation with toxic gases; however, many insect pests of honey bees have developed resistance to the conventional control methods. This study aimed to study the toxicity of crude bee venom on developmental stages of A. grisella as safer alternative and replacement of these chemicals. The bee venom was collected by placing the electric bee venom collector device at the entrance of the beehive. Newly deposited eggs of A. grisella were assayed to evaluate the crude honey bee venom effect on the viability of eggs. Dried crude honey bee venom was diluted with pure acetone to concentrations of 50, 25, 12.5 and 6.25 µg/µl. Egg hatchability was significantly (p50) of 52.89 µg /µl. The topical application of crude honey bee venom was applied on 3rd instar larvae with concentrations of 0, 6.25, 12.5, 25, 50 µg. The calculated mortality percentages for all treatments were 8% at the lower concentration and 52% at the high concentration. The calculated lethal median concentration LC50 was 38.27 µg /µl.

Honey and its Phytochemicals: Plausible Agents in Combating Colon Cancer through its Diversified Actions

Cancer is one of the leading causes of death worldwide. Among them, colorectal cancer is linked with diet as the epithelial cells of colon and rectum come in direct contact with diet. Diets rich in phenolic constituents are associated in eradicating various noncommunicable diseases including cancer. This work illustrates antiproliferative effects of honey and its phytochemicals against colorectal cancer to limelight. Honey and its phytochemicals are found to inhibit the cancer growth. Changes like activation of caspase-3, caspase-8, polyadenosine diphosphate-ribose polymerase cleavage, boost in ROS level activating mitochondrial pathway, lipid layer breakage, DNA fragmentation, increase of G0/G1 phase cells, up-regulation of Bax regulators and p53 dependent apoptosis are significant. It is high time for scientists to initiate more trails using honey and its phytochemicals against some immune-deficient animal models of colon cancer and in low- and high-risk human individuals to validate honey as a mighty sword against colon cancer. This review promulgates honey and its phytochemicals as candidates in colon cancer prevention. Practical Application: Colon cancer is the third largest cause of cancer death worldwide. The standard chemotherapeutic agents are usually noneffective in the latter stages of cancer. As colorectal cancer is more prone to the diet consumed, scientists have explored many dietary compounds to treat this particular type of cancer. In our review, we highlight the effect of honey and its phenolic constituents against the colon cancer cells. Various, in vitro experiments done are enlisted. This review also emphasis the need of numerous studies that are needed to be initiated to explore the anticancer effect of crude honey specifically. As honey is one of the ingredients used in daily life, honey can also be used in chemoprevention against colon cancer.

Anti-Inflammatory and Anti-Microbial Activities of Selected Honey Samples

The medical property of honey in wound healing was reported due to its anti-inflammatory and anti-microbial activities. It is believed that polar compounds including sugars and polyphenols in honey could contribute to the biological activities. In this study, crude honey samples of Tualang, Gelam and Acacia were fractionated into polar fractions using a C18 reversed-phase extraction column. The polar fractions were found to be more effective than crude honey samples because of lower effective concentration (0.04-0.37 g mL-1) at 50% of inhibition. However, the polar fractions did not improve the selectivity of inhibition against cyclooxygenase-2. Polar fractionation also did not improve the anti-microbial activities of crude honey samples. The improvement was only showed by Tualang honey fraction (~70%) with the minimum inhibitory concentration (3.1% (w/v)) against Candida albican. The potential bioactive compounds were putatively identified as hydroxymethylfurfural, ethyl glucuronide, myricetin and apigenin glycoside based on the results of LC-MS/MS.

Crude honey bee venom and Bacillus thuringiensis L. Cry1c toxin in controlling wax moth Achroia grisella F. (Lepidoptera: Pyralidae)

Achroia grisella, is a noxious pest of honey bee hives. In this study the toxicity of honey bee venom and bacterial Cry1C toxin of Bacillus thuringiensis on A. grisella were assessed. In addition, the synergistic interaction between BT Cry1c and crude honey bee venom was determined. The combination of HBV and Cry1C increased the activity for both toxins. Therefore, further analysis was carried out to assess the synergistic interaction of each compound assay separately and in mixture. The results showed LC50 value of 1.105 μg/μl for HBV and LC50 value of 0.201 μg/μl for Cry1C. The combination bioassay result showed an LC50 value of 0.549 μg/μl. The combined calculated LC50 is containing lower concentration of the component toxins, this result proved that the toxicity was enhanced due to the combination. A chi square value of 39.93and relative synergistic factor ratio of 1.14 confirmed that a synergic interaction was achieved in combination.

Assessment of Honey Production and Marketing System in Gomma District, South Western Ethiopia

The study was conducted in Gomma district of Jimma Zone, south western Ethiopia to assess honey production and marketing systems. For this study, six peasant associations (PAs) were selected using purposive sampling techniques. From each PA, 30 beekeepers (a total of 180) were randomly selected and interviewed using pre-tested, structured questionnaires. Data were collected and analyzed using descriptive statistics. Results of the study showed that the mean age of the respondents was 40.47 years, indicating an active and productive age. The beekeepers had an average experience of 5.66 years where male respondents (92.8 %) take the largest share to be engaged in beekeeping activities. The average honey yield per year/colony was 7.20 ±0.23, 14.70 ±0.62 and 23.38±0.73kg for traditional, transitional and moveable frame hives, respectively. Honey marketing participants were producers, collectors, retailers and consumers. There was no difference in price of crude honey between study locations (P>0.05), while significance difference (P<0.05) was observed for table honey. From results of the study honey yield per hive/year was found to be low from traditional and transitional hives as compared to moveable frame hive. Thus, strong extension and technical intervention is important for farmers to use the moveable frame hives to increase honey production and income of beekeepers in the study area.

English

The search for new anti-cancer drugs from natural products is one of the most prominent research areas of treatment of cancer. Honey finds a vital role in various applications using its anti-inflammatory, antioxidant, antibacterial and antitumor properties. We investigated the potential of honey to induce cytotoxic and antiproliferative effects in cultured human prostate cancer cell line (PC-3) in comparison to non-malignant (L929) cells. Both cells were cultured in RPMI medium and treated with the selected crude honey sample at various concentrations (5, 10 and 15%) for three consecutive days. The results revealed that the cell viability decreased in a concentration and time- dependent manner in the malignant cells treated with honey in comparison with non-malignant cells. Honey showed anti-proliferative activity with the IC50 value 4, 10 and 14% after 24, 48 and 72 h, respectively in PC-3 cell line. Overall, it can be concluded that higher concentrations of honey is safe for L929, but it exerts anti-tumor cytotoxicity and anti-proliferative effects in a prostate cancer-derived cell line. Thus, it is considered as a potential chemotherapeutic agent against prostate cancer. Key words: Anti-proliferative, programmed cell death, Honey bee, human prostateadenocarcinoma, MTT.

Abstract 81: Differential metabolic and viability responses of the A549 and MRC-5 cell lines upon exposure to selective organic inhibitors of glycolysis

Abstract Lung cancer is a one of the most prevalent and deadly cancers in United States. Research has shown that cancer cells exhibit higher glycolytic rates than normal cells. Studies on the differential role of the interference with glycolysis/energy generation by cancer cells through the use natural glycolytic inhibitors were limited in the literature. Therefore, we hypothesize that exposure of lung cancer cells to natural inhibitors of glycolysis will negatively influence their metabolic activities as well as their cell viabilities due to the inhibition of substrate-level ATP generation, while differentially not affecting the normal lung phenotype. The human lung fibroblast cell line (MRC-5) was selected to represent the normal human lung and the human alveolar epithelial cell line A549 was selected to represent lung cancer in vitro. These cells were maintained and exposed to eleven different organic reagents including fructose diphosphate (FDP), sodium citrate, ascorbic acid, crude honey, sodium bicarbonate, D-glucose, oxalic acid, glycerol, zinc acetate, pyruvic acid, and sodium ascorbate at concentration levels ranging from 31.3-2,000 ug/ml for 24-72 hours in 5% CO2 and 96 well plates using MTT, Alamar blue and the T4 cellometer assays as well as phase-contrast photo-imaging. Our results indicate that exposure of A549 cells to these organics resulted in concentration dependent differential cell destruction of the A549 cell line. Nine of the eleven organics used showed statistically significant (p&amp;lt;0.05) differential negative effects (impaired metabolic activity and cell death) on the A549 cell line in comparison to its control as well as to their effects on the MRC-5 cell line using MTT, Alamar blue and T4 cell viability assays. Data from the MTT assay showed limitations in detecting the true cell viability in comparison to the T4 data. Viability using the T4 cellometer ranged between 60-76% for the A549 compared to 96-100% for its control as well as the exposed MRC-5 cell line. LC50 using MTT and Alamar blue assays ranged between 161-1041 ug/ml. None of the eleven chemicals used allowed for cell proliferation of the A549 cell line while showing no or minor effects on the MRC-5 cell line. We conclude that nine of the tested organics impaired glycolysis, which is crucial to the generation of cellular energy and survival of the A549 cell line. Supported by NIH-RCMI grant# G12RR13459 and NIH-RISE grant # 63228. Citation Format: {Authors}. {Abstract title} [abstract]. In: Proceedings of the 101st Annual Meeting of the American Association for Cancer Research; 2010 Apr 17-21; Washington, DC. Philadelphia (PA): AACR; Cancer Res 2010;70(8 Suppl):Abstract nr 81.