Floral Sources Research Articles

Exploring Fraudulent Honey Cases from Readily Available Food Fraud Databases

Objective - Honey has been identified statistically, from an extensive record of scholarly journals and media reports, as one of the most adulterated ingredients. It has a long history of dilution, substitution, misrepresentation of floral sources, and geographical origin. Despite the growing reported honey adulteration cases, the global honey market has been retaining its dominance. According to Market Research Future, honey demand estimates to flourish at a substantial growth rate of 7.22% during the forecast period of 2017-2023. Increasing demand and commercial value of honey motivate falsification and adulteration in honey. This paper aims to examine the underlying factor of honey fraud's existence and prevalence by reviewing the core issues in honey quality assurance from a commercial standpoint. Methodology/Technique - This paper reports on the industry scale of honey fraud using data from existing food fraud databases. Honey fraud cases from Food Adulteration Incidents Registry (FAIR) and Food Fraud Summary Month Reports were extracted, reviewed, and summarized. Finding - The findings begin with an overview of past cases and current standing of honey fraud, followed by identification of the types of fraudulent practices on honey, and lastly, highlighting the challenges in fighting honey fraud. Findings conclude the scale of honey fraud which is widespread and interconnected across the world. Honey fraud includes fraudulent admixing with sugars or lower quality honey and incorrect labeling of honey's geographical origin or floral source. Challenges in combatting honey fraud are primarily due to financial motivations for producing and selling fraudulent honey and low control measures in the traceability system. Novelty - This paper reports on the scale of honey fraud in the industry using data from the existing food fraud database. Compared to the abundance of research reporting on the latest most advanced detection method for honey authenticity, this paper examines the underlying factor on the existence of honey fraud and the fundamental control measure to be taken. Type of Paper - Review Keywords: Fraudulent Honey; Honey Adulteration; Industrial Malpractice; Apiculture JEL Classification: Q10, Q18. URI: http://gatrenterprise.com/GATRJournals/GJBSSR/vol9.2_1.html DOI: https://doi.org/10.35609/gjbssr.2021.9.2(1) Pages 99 – 113

Physicochemical and antibacterial activities of Apis honey types derived from Coorg, Karnataka, India

Natural honey has various ingredients in it that contribute to its incredible properties. The aim of this investigation was to evaluate the physicochemical and antibacterial activity of various Apis honey from Coorg, Karnataka. Four samples of Apis honey viz., A. florea, A. mellifera, A. cerana and A. dorsata were collected from various regions of Coorg, Karnataka. The honey samples' physicochemical properties and antibacterial activities against Streptococcus sp., Staphylococcus aureus, Bacillus subtilis and Enterococcus sp were determined in vitro. The moisture and ash content varied from 13.6 - 17.2% and 0.32 – 0.49%, respectively. Hydroxy methyl furfurals) content of A. dorsata honey samples was highest with 9.2±0.5 mg/Kg and least was recorded with 6.8±0.4 mg/Kg for A. florae honey. The reducing sugar content of A. florea honey sample was highest with 87.5±3.2 (%) and the peroxide levels were in the range of 10.2 – 14.9 µg/g/h at 20°C. The antibacterial assay revealed that S. aureus, Enterococcus sp and Streptococcus sp were most susceptible against the honey varieties tested and minimum inhibitory concentration (MIC) values between 25-6.5 (%v/v) were determined. In conclusion, honey varieties from Coorg could be used in specific antibacterial prophylaxis as the activity depends on the honey bee species, their metabolism and floral sources in specific geographical regions.

Pollen DNA metabarcoding identifies regional provenance and high plant diversity in Australian honey.

Accurate identification of the botanical components of honey can be used to establish its geographical provenance, while also providing insights into honeybee (Apis mellifera L.) diet and foraging preferences. DNA metabarcoding has been demonstrated as a robust method to identify plant species from pollen and pollen‐based products, including honey. We investigated the use of pollen metabarcoding to identify the floral sources and local foraging preferences of honeybees using 15 honey samples from six bioregions from eastern and western Australia. We used two plant metabarcoding markers, ITS2 and the trnL P6 loop. Both markers combined identified a total of 55 plant families, 67 genera, and 43 species. The trnL P6 loop marker provided significantly higher detection of taxa, detecting an average of 15.6 taxa per sample, compared to 4.6 with ITS2. Most honeys were dominated by Eucalyptus and other Myrtaceae species, with a few honeys dominated by Macadamia (Proteaceae) and Fabaceae. Metabarcoding detected the nominal primary source provided by beekeepers among the top five most abundant taxa for 85% of samples. We found that eastern and western honeys could be clearly differentiated by their floral composition, and clustered into bioregions with the trnL marker. Comparison with previous results obtained from melissopalynology shows that metabarcoding can detect similar numbers of plant families and genera, but provides significantly higher resolution at species level. Our results show that pollen DNA metabarcoding is a powerful and robust method for detecting honey provenance and examining the diet of honeybees. This is particularly relevant for hives foraging on the unique and diverse flora of the Australian continent, with the potential to be used as a novel monitoring tool for honeybee floral resources.

Natural contaminants in bee pollen: DNA metabarcoding as a tool to identify floral sources of pyrrolizidine alkaloids and fungal diversity

The use of bee pollen as a food supplement has increased in recent years as it contains several nutrients and phytochemicals. However, depending on floral composition, bee pollen can be contaminated by pyrrolizidine alkaloids (PAs), PA N-oxides (PANOs) and toxigenic fungi found in plants, which may pose a potential health risk for consumers. Thus, a DNA metabarcoding approach based on internal transcribed spacer 2 (ITS2) region was used to identify the plant sources of 17 PAs/PANOs detected by a validated method in liquid chromatography coupled to mass spectrometry (LC-MS/MS), as well as floral and fungal diversity in 61 bee pollen samples. According to LC-MS/MS analysis, 67% of the samples contained PAs/PANOs with mean concentration of 339 µg/kg. The contamination pattern was characterised by lycopsamine- and senecionine-type PAs/PANOs. PA/PANO-producing plants were identified in 54% of the PA/PANO-contaminated samples analysed by DNA metabarcoding, which also allowed identifying the overall floral and fungal composition of 56 samples. To evaluate the performance of the molecular approach, a subset of 25 samples was analysed by classical palynology. Palynological analysis partially confirmed the results of DNA metabarcoding, which had a better performance in distinguishing pollens of different genera from Asteraceae (76%) and Brassicaceae (88%). However, the molecular analysis did not identify pollens from Castanea, Eucalyptus, Hedera and Salix, which were abundant in 11 samples according to palynology. On the other hand, the molecular analysis allowed identifying several fungal genera in 33 samples, including the toxigenic fungi Alternaria and Aspergillus, which were positively correlated to the plant genus Hypericum. Despite limitations in identifying some pollen types, these preliminary results suggest that the DNA metabarcoding could be applied in a multidisciplinary approach to give a picture of floral and fungal diversity, which can be sources of natural contaminants in bee pollen and would help to control its safety.

Pollen source preferences and pollination efficacy of honey bee, Apis mellifera (Apidae: Hymenoptera) on Brassica napus crop

Brassica napus is an insect-pollinated crop species and offers itself as the main nutrient source to many insects that consume floral nectar. This study was carried out to ascertain the pollen preferences of Apis mellifera among the available floral resources. We wanted to identify and quantify all types of pollen collected by honeybee during the flowering period. Moreover, the foraging rate and pollination efficacy of managed honey bee colonies (placed at 250 and 500 m distance away) on B. napus crop were determined. The results revealed that A. mellifera foraged efficiently on 18 plants species belonging to 11 families during the flowering period of the Brassica crop. The Asteraceae family was represented by six plants species as pollen sources followed by Solanaceae, Malvaceae, Fabaceae, and Rosaceae represented by two plant species from each family. One floral source included Brassicaceae, Convolvulaceae, and Poaceae families. Among 18 identified plant species, 6 were weeds, 4 herbs, 4 shrubs, and 2 species each were from crops and ornamental plants. In this study, weeds were reported as the major bee supporting bee flora followed by shrub and crops. The identified pollen grains had different morphology such as sub-spheroid, prolate shape, spheroid, ovate, glandular, triangular, round, and oval shape. The maximum foraging activities of bees on B. napus took place during day hours particularly at 12:00 PM followed by 14:00 PM, and then at 10:00 AM weekly. The study revealed that the total number of pods per plant, total number of seeds per 100 pods, and weight of seeds per 10 plants were significantly higher in bee-pollinated flowering plants compared to flowering plants with no bee-pollination.

Floral origin modulates the content of a lipid marker in Apis mellifera honey

The compound DAGE (DiAcyl Glyceryl Ether, 1-stearyl-2,3-dioleoyl glycerol), present in Apis mellifera honey, is a lipidic entomological marker secreted by the salivary glands of worker bees. Its content was determined by NMR, analyzing the organic extracts of a number of Italian honeys of different floral typology. We have found that the DAGE content is related to the botanical origin of honey. This dependence on floral typology was further confirmed by a linear correlation (R2 > 0.83) observed between the content of DAGE and the enzymatic activity of invertase and diastase in honey. Also these enzymes originate from bee salivary secretions and their concentrations in honey are known to depend on the floral source. DAGE content appears to be a sensitive parameter to some forms of honey manipulations, as indicated by the results of artificial bee-feeding experiments. This suggests its possible use as indicator of honey authenticity.

Evaluation of biochemical and antioxidant properties of Indian and Yemeni honey

Honey exhibits a potent antioxidant activity; it varies according to floral sources and the geographical origin of the honey. The study was aimed to evaluate the biochemical and antioxidant properties of 84 monofloral and multiforal honey samples collected throughout India and Yemen. All the Indian and Yemeni honey samples exhibited considerable variations with reference to their level of total phenolic content (TFC), total flavonoid content (TFC), radical-scavenging activity, ascorbic acid as well as total carotenoid content (TCC). A strong significant correlation between biochemical parameters and radical scavenging activity was found. Our results indicated that Indian and Yemeni honey can be considered a good source of antioxidant and biochemical compounds.

Bioactive and physicochemical profile of honey collected from Colombian organic and conventional coffee growing areas

A study related to the physicochemical composition and profile of phenolic compounds and flavonoids was performed on honey of Apis mellifera L. (Hymenoptera: Apidae) obtained in coffee-growing areas from Sierra Nevada de Santa Marta, in Colombia. A total of 67 samples were obtained from hives installed on coffee farms classified according to their type of production: organic or conventional. The results of physical properties and chemical composition analyses showed that the honey samples were within the limits established by international regulations. The phenolic compounds and flavonoids identified as chemical markers of interest were coumaric, caffeic, and cinnamic acid, as well as luteolin, quercetin, and isorhamnetin. Tukey's multiple comparison tests showed no major significant differences between the composition of the honey samples from organic coffee growing areas compared to conventional plantations, mainly because of the similarity of floral sources in the surrounding area. Additionally, an analysis of pesticides and heavy metals showed the absence of such components in all samples, confirming that regardless of the type of production, this region is an environmentally clean agricultural zone. This information will generate bases for the differentiation by origin of honey from Sierra Nevada de Santa Marta, aimed to improve their marketing and promote added value.

Physicochemical properties of blended raw honey samples collected from three different locations of Kannad taluka of Aurangabad district (MS), India

The present study was carried out to investigate the physicochemical properties of blended raw honey samples collected from three different locations from Kannad taluka of Aurangabad district (MS). The parameters like moisture content, pH, electrical conductivity, total reducing sugars, glucose, fructose, fructose glucose ratio, sucrose, Hydroxymethylfurfural (HMF), proline, protein content, Vitamin C, lipid content, were analyzed by AOAC method (2000). The results clearly indicate that the samples compared favorably with samples in many parts of the world and also fall within the limits of international standards. The variations in the physicochemical properties of honey samples are related to differences in the floral sources, climatic conditions and site of collection to the studied area. Overall the results indicate that the nutritional quality of honey was different from species to species and from location to location.

Stored pollen of Frieseomelitta meadewaldoi (Cockerell, 1915) (Apidae, Meliponini) in the Atlantic Forest of the Northern Coast of Bahia, Brazil

Fragmentation of the Atlantic Forest negatively impacts the population dynamics of native pollinators in these environments, especially that of stingless bees. Meanwhile, stingless bees contribute to the self-regeneration of vegetation and the sustainability of agriculture through pollination services. Thus, studies of the floral sources exploited by bees are essential for the development of conservation strategies for the associated flora and fauna. The present study represents the first palynological characterization of the stored pollen of Frieseomelitta meadewaldoi (Cockerell, 1915) in an area of Atlantic Forest, with the objective of determining the important plant species in the composition of trophic resources of the colonies of these bees. A total of 19 monthly samples were collected in three colonies during the period of April 2013 to March 2014. After processing by acetolysis, pollen types were identified and at least 1000 pollen grains were counted. Pollen morphology was described for the most representative pollen types. Microscopic analysis revealed the presence of 39 pollen types, distributed in 20 families, three of which were indeterminate. Pollen types of the families Fabaceae, Gentianaceae, Loranthaceae, Malvaceae, Rutaceae, Sapindaceae, Urticaceae, and Violaceae were prominent. Among the pollen types found, Waltheria, Dioclea, and Schultesia contributed the most to the pollen spectrum of F. meadewaldoi, which reveals it to have a generalist behavior but with concentrated foraging on some particular plant species, which indicates potential key plants for the maintenance of this species in nature.

Cataloguing the small RNA content of honey using next generation sequencing

Honey adulteration is a problem that effects the global honey industry and specifically, has been discovered in the Australian market. Common methods of adulteration include dilution with sugar syrup substitutes and the mislabelling of the floral and geographic origin(s) of honey. Current authentication tools rely on the molecular variability between different honeys, identifying unique chemical profiles and/or DNA signatures characteristic of a particular honey.Honey is known to contain plant miRNAs derived from its floral source. To explore the composition and variability of honey RNA molecules, this is the first study to catalogue the small RNA content of Australian polyfloral table honey and New Zealand Leptospermum scoparium honey using next generation sequencing. The data shows that in addition to miRNAs, honey contains a variety of small non-coding RNAs including tRNA-derived fragments. Moreover, the honey small RNAs are derived from a range of phylogenetic sources, including from plant, invertebrate, and prokaryotic species. The data indicates that different honeys contain unique small RNA profiles, which suggests a novel avenue in developing molecular-based honey authentication tools.

Physicochemical, antioxidant and FTIR-ATR spectroscopy evaluation of Kashmiri honeys as food quality traceability and Himalayan brand.

Three types of honeys viz. Robinia pseudoacacia (RSA), Plectranthus rugosus (PR) and multifloral honey (MF) from Kashmir Himalayas of India were characterized on the basis of physicochemical, antioxidant and FTIR-ATR spectroscopic features. The physicochemical parameters indicated that ash content, electrical conductivity, redness (a*) and yellowness (b*) were higher in MF honey, moisture content, Hydroxymethylfurfural (HMF) and lightness (L*) in PR honey and Water activity (aw) and proline content in RSA honey (P ≤ 0.05). Significantly higher values of total sugar, total reducing sugar and sucrose content was observed in MF honey (P ≤ 0.05). The total phenolic content (TPC), total flavonoids, ferric reducing antioxidant power and 1, 1-diphenyl-2-picrylhydrazy-IC50 (DPPH- IC50) free radical scavenging activity showed that MF honey had significantly higher antioxidant activity (P ≤ 0.05). ATR-FTIR analysis demonstrated that the absence of peaks at broad band around 1653.454-1637.656cm-1 in MF honey, 1185.989-1153.072cm-1 and 918.570-916.544cm-1 wavenumbers in PR honey thus clearly discriminating different types of honeys. The results revealed that physico-chemical, antioxidant and spectroscopic characteristics of honey types vary with geographic origin and their floral sources and MF honey have a high therapeutic potential.

A half-day flowering pattern helps plants sharing pollinators in an oceanic island community

AbstractThe temporal pattern of flower opening and closure is a feature of the biology of many plant species, particularly those inhabiting oceanic islands where flowering generally lasts for only a few hours per day. Additionally, flower visitors often seek different floral sources on a timely basis, thus the relative timing of interactions is central to their status in pollination competition, or in the facilitation of pollination among co-flowering plants sharing pollinators. However, few studies have examined the impacts of daily temporal variation in flowering patterns on the pollinator network and competition on a community scale. In order to examine whether the daily pattern of flower opening and closure can impose temporal dynamics on interspecific interactions within a single day, plant–pollinator interaction networks (AM subweb and PM subweb) were quantified, and the relevant interactions between the two subwebs were compared using the Bray–Curtis dissimilarity of visitation frequencies in an oceanic island community (Paracel Islands, South China Sea). The role of species within networks and its variation between two subwebs were assessed by calculating the species-level specialization and species strength of each plant and pollinator species. The quantitative plant–pollinator interaction dissimilarity between morning and afternoon subsets was 0.69, and this value dropped to 0.58 when considering plant species flowering throughout the day. In our study, this dissimilarity between the two subwebs might be explained by the morning peak activity rather than a preference for morning flowers. No significant differences were detected in the species-level specialization and species strength of plants flowering all day from morning to afternoon at the community level. The flower visitation rates of native honeybeeApis ceranawere not significantly different between morning and afternoon for most of the whole-day flowering plants. However, plant species only flowering either in the morning or the afternoon differed in the rate of visitation byA. cerana. The analyses of variation in the visitation rates of pollinators shared by plants within a single day in the studied community suggest that daily structuring at a community level and half-day staggered flowering during the morning or afternoon might reduce competitive interactions in oceanic insular habitats.

Royal jelly from different floral sources possesses distinct wound-healing mechanisms and ingredient profiles.

In recent years, population aging together with the increased prevalence of diabetes and obesity has fuelled a surge in the instances of cutaneous non-healing wounds. Royal jelly (RJ) is a traditional remedy for wound repair; however, the subjacent mechanisms and ingredient profiles are still largely unknown. Our previous study found that Castanea mollissima Bl. RJ (CmRJ-Zj) possessed superior wound healing-promoting effects on both the in vivo and in vitro models than Brassica napus L. RJ (BnRJ-Zj). This study conducted an in-depth investigation on the wound-repairing mechanisms of CmRJ-Zj and BnRJ-Zj to explain the previously observed phenomenon and also comprehensively characterized their constituents. It was found that chestnut RJ could enhance cutaneous wound healing by boosting the growth and mobility of keratinocytes, modulating the expression of aquaporin 3 (AQP3), regulating MAPK and calcium pathways, and mediating inflammatory responses. By employing LC-MS/MS-based proteomic and metabolomic techniques, the comprehensive molecules present in CmRJ-Zj and BnRJ-Zj were elucidated, resulting in a clear discrimination from each other. A total of 15 and 631 differential proteins and compounds were identified, and 217 proteins were newly found in RJ proteome. With bioinformatic functional analysis, we speculated that some differential components were responsible for the wound-healing properties of CmRJ-Zj. Therefore, this study provides an insight into the wound-healing mechanisms of RJ and is the first to explore the compositions of RJ from different nectar plants. It will facilitate the development of therapeutic agents from RJ to treat difficult-to-heal wounds and the distinction of different RJ categories.

Is Sustainability Possible in Beekeeping?

In recent years, beekeeping has faced off economic difficulties as a result of the negative effects in production due to environmental conditions and serious colony losses because of the climatic changes and different practices. It grows especially with beekeeping problems which are seen as a model in rural development. In recent years, the ineffective treatment against bee diseases / pests and newly emerging diseases are the main problems for bee health. The wrong applications for the disease control of bees' parasites / pathogens led to resistance of them over the years. Likewise, inappropriate use of chemicals causes the residues in the bee products. The climate changes prevent to the honey bees from effective use of floral sources. At the same time it causes unfavorable effects in the bee colony due to their undernourishment.  Adding of the unsuitable applications of the beekeepers during colony management,  it becomes important for the sustainability of healthy colonies. At this point, the beekeeping industry is looking for serious solutions for its sustainability. This study aimed to reveal prospective solutions for the future by examining the problems and solution strategies for sustainability in beekeeping.

Development and validation of a new microplate assay that utilises optical density to quantify the antibacterial activity of honeys including Jarrah, Marri and Manuka.

The phenol equivalence assay is the current industry-adopted test used to quantify the antibacterial activity of honeys in Australia and New Zealand. Activity is measured based on the diffusion of honey through agar and resulting zone of growth inhibition. Due to differences in the aqueous solubilities of antibacterial compounds found in honeys, this method may not be optimal for quantifying activity. Therefore, a new method was developed based on the existing broth microdilution assay that is widely used for determining minimum inhibitory concentrations (MICs). It utilises the four organisms Staphylococcus aureus ATCC 29213, Enterococcus faecalis ATCC 29212, Escherichia coli ATCC 25922 and Pseudomonas aeruginosa ATCC 27853, and an optical density endpoint to quantify bacterial growth. Decreases in bacterial growth in the presence of honey, relative to the positive growth control, are then used to derive a single value to represent the overall antibacterial activity of each honey. Antibacterial activity was quantified for a total of 77 honeys using the new method, the phenol equivalence assay and the standard broth microdilution assay. This included 69 honeys with undisclosed floral sources and the comparators Manuka, Jarrah (Eucalyptus marginata), Marri (Corymbia calophylla), artificial and multifloral honey. For the 69 honey samples, phenol equivalence values ranged from 0–48.5 with a mean of 34 (% w/v phenol). Mean MICs, determined as the average of the MICs obtained for each of the four organisms for each honey ranged from 7–24% (w/v honey). Using the new assay, values for the 69 honeys ranged from 368 to 669 activity units, with a mean of 596. These new antibacterial activity values correlated closely with mean MICs (R2 = 0.949) whereas the relationship with phenol equivalence values was weaker (R2 = 0.649). Limit of detection, limit of quantitation, measuring interval, limit of reporting, sensitivity, selectivity, repeatability, reproducibility, and ruggedness were also investigated and showed that the new assay was both robust and reproducible.

Total phenolic acids and flavonoid contents determination in Yemeni honey of various floral sources: Folin-Ciocalteu and spectrophotometric approach

Twenty-nine Yemeni honey samples were analyzed to determine total phenolic and flavonoid contents using Folin-Ciocalteu and spectrophotometric technique. These tested honey samples were collected from different regions corresponding to various floral species: jujube, cactus and multifloral plants. Folin-Ciocalteu method was adopted for the analysis of total phenolic and flavonoid contents. Gallic acid and quercetin were considered as the best standards as the spectrophotometric response of these compounds are equivalent to most other phenolic acids and flavonoid compounds, respectively. The obtained results of honey samples were in a wide range; the highest phenolic acid concentration was obtained for honey produced from cactus, while the lowest value corresponded to monofloral honey from jujube. On the other hand, a broad variation was also observed in total flavonoid content; the highest value was obtained for honey collected from cactus area (S4) and the lowest value was found in honey produced from multifloral plants (A1).

The in vitro and in vivo wound-healing effects of royal jelly derived from Apis mellifera L. during blossom seasons of Castanea mollissima Bl. and Brassica napus L. in South China exhibited distinct patterns

BackgroundNon-healing wounds have been a severe issue in the global healthcare system. Regrettably, royal jelly, a traditional remedy for various skin injuries, has not been widely applied in cutaneous wounds in clinical practice nowadays, which may be due to the confusion and the lack of knowledge about the efficacies of different types of royal jelly, the bioactive constituents, and the precise mechanisms underlying the wound repairing activity. Since the compositions and bioactivities of royal jelly are predominantly influenced by nectar plants, this study aims to explore the differences in the wound-healing properties of royal jelly produced by Apis mellifera L. during the blossom seasons of different floral sources, to provide guidelines for the future rational application of royal jelly in cutaneous wounds, and to promote the further discovery of wound repair-promoting substances.MethodsRoyal jelly samples were harvested during flowering seasons of Castanea mollissima Bl. (chestnut) and Brassica napus L. (rapeseed) in South China, from which hydrophilic and lipophilic fractions were extracted. The in vivo wound-healing potential was preliminarily assessed in Wistar rats’ excisional full-thickness wounds, followed by investigating the mechanisms of action through in vitro assays with human epidermal keratinocytes and LPS-stimulated inflammation in macrophages.ResultsThe results indicated that different royal jelly samples exhibited distinct wound-healing potential, in which Castanea mollissima Bl. royal jelly was more potent. It sped up wound closure between day 2 and day 4 to 0.25 cm2/day (p < 0.05), and could accelerate wound repair by enhancing the proliferative and migratory capabilities of keratinocytes by 50.9% (p < 0.001) and 14.9% (p < 0.001), modulating inflammation through inhibiting nitric oxide production by 46.2% (p < 0.001), and promoting cell growth through increasing the secretion of transforming growth factor-β by 44.7% (p < 0.001). In contrast, Brassica napus L. royal jelly could regulate inflammation by reducing the amount of tumour necrosis factor-α by 21.3% (p < 0.001).ConclusionsThe present study improves the application of royal jelly for curing difficult-to-heal wounds, in which the hydrosoluble extract of Castanea mollissima Bl. royal jelly promises the greatest potential. It also provides clues which may lead towards the identification of substances derived from royal jelly to treat wounds.

Baccharis dracunculifolia and Dalbergia ecastophyllum, Main Plant Sources for Bioactive Properties in Green and Red Brazilian Propolis.

Nowadays, propolis is used as a highly valuable product in alternative medicine for improving health or treating a large spectrum of pathologies, an ingredient in pharmaceutical products, and also as a food additive. Different vegetal materials are collected by honeybees and mixed with wax and other own substances in order to obtain the final product, called propolis. It is known as the bee product with the widest chemical composition due to the raw material collected by the bees. Different types are known worldwide: green Brazilian propolis (having Baccharis dracunculifolia as the major plant source), red Brazilian propolis (from Dalbergia ecastophyllum), European propolis (Populus nigra L.), Russian propolis (Betula verrucosa Ehrh), Cuban and Venezuelan red propolis (Clusia spp.), etc. An impressive number of scientific papers already demonstrate the pharmacological potential of different types of propolis, the most important activities being the antimicrobial, anti-inflammatory, antitumor, immunomodulatory, and antioxidant activities. However, the bioactive compounds responsible for each activity have not been fully elucidated. This review aims to collect important data about the chemical composition and bioactive properties of the vegetal sources and to compare with the chemical composition of respective propolis types, in order to determine the connection between the floral source and the propolis properties.

Domestic Gardens Mitigate Risk of Exposure of Pollinators to Pesticides—An Urban-Rural Case Study Using a Red Mason Bee Species for Biomonitoring

Domestic gardens supply pollinators with valuable habitats, but the risk of exposure to pesticides has been little investigated. Artificial nesting shelters of a red mason bee species (Osmia bicornis) were placed in two suburban gardens and two commercial fruit orchards to determine the contamination of forage sources by pesticides. Larval pollen provisions were collected from a total of 14 nests. They consisted mainly of pollen from oaks (65–100% weight/sample), Brassicaceae (≤34% w/s) and fruit trees (≤1.6% w/s). Overall, 30 pesticides were detected and each sample contained a mixture of 11–21 pesticide residues. The pesticide residues were significantly lower in garden samples than in orchard samples. The difference was attributed mainly to the abundant fungicides pyrimethanil and boscalid, which were sprayed in fruit orchards and were present on average at 1004 ppb and 648 ppb in orchard samples, respectively. The results suggested that pollinators can benefit from domestic gardens by foraging from floral sources less contaminated by pesticides than in adjacent croplands.