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Special Issue "Quality Control of Bee Products: Functional and Chemical Properties"

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A special issue of Molecules (ISSN 1420-3049). This special issue belongs to the section "Applied Chemistry".

Deadline for manuscript submissions: 31 October 2023 | Viewed by 8951

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Special Issue Editors

Dr. Claudia Pașca

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Department of Apiculture and Sericulture, Faculty of Animal Science and Biotechnologies, University of Agricultural and Veterinary Medicine Cluj-Napoca, 3-5 Mănăștur Street, 400372 Cluj-Napoca, Romania
Interests: beekeeping; atomic absorption spectroscopy; bee products; probiotics; extraction; contaminants; in vitro evaluations of biological activity of bee products

Dr. Victorița Bonta

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Department of Apiculture and Sericulture, Faculty of Animal Science and Biotechnologies, University of Agricultural and Veterinary Medicine Cluj-Napoca, 3-5 Mănăștur Street, 400372 Cluj-Napoca, Romania
Interests: high-performance liquid chromatography analysis; gas chromatography analysis; contaminants; validated methods; LC-MS/MS analysis

Dr. Otilia Bobis

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Life Science Institute “King Michael I of Romania”, University of Agricultural Sciences and Veterinary Medicine Cluj, Manastur st. 3-5, 400372 Cluj-Napoca, Romania
Interests: food chemistry; bee products; plant extracts; isolation and characterization of plant extracts; chromatography; spectrometry; in vitro evaluations of biological activity of bee products (honey, propolis, bee pollen, royal jelly); foods and plant extracts
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Prof. Dr. Daniel Severus Dezmirean

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Department of Apiculture and Sericulture, Faculty of Animal Science and Biotechnologies, University of Agricultural and Veterinary Medicine Cluj-Napoca, 3-5 Mănăștur Street, 400372 Cluj-Napoca, Romania
Interests: Apis mellifera; propolis; bee pollen; bioactive compounds of bee products; animal biotechnology; bee diseases; molecular analysis
Special Issues, Collections and Topics in MDPI journals

Special Issue Information

Dear Colleagues,

This review summarizes the current knowledge on the complex and variable composition of bee products. These products have functional benefits due to a large number of biological activities; thus, interest in them has increased since the outbreak of the COVID-19 pandemic.

Due to their complex composition, a multitude of analytical methods have been used to study the quality and chemical characteristics of bee products. However, in order to obtain reliable and comparable data, such methods need to be standardized.

Moreover, the use of synthetic chemicals to control bee diseases is limited due to their negative effects on the quality of bee products.

Taking these issues into account, this Special Issue of Molecules will present studies on the functional properties and chemical composition of bee products to further disseminate crucial knowledge in this field.

Dr. Claudia Pașca
Dr. Victorița Bonta
Dr. Otilia Bobiș
Prof. Dr. Daniel Severus Dezmirean
Guest Editors

Manuscript Submission Information

Manuscripts should be submitted online at www.mdpi.com by registering and logging in to this website. Once you are registered, click here to go to the submission form. Manuscripts can be submitted until the deadline. All submissions that pass pre-check are peer-reviewed. Accepted papers will be published continuously in the journal (as soon as accepted) and will be listed together on the special issue website. Research articles, review articles as well as short communications are invited. For planned papers, a title and short abstract (about 100 words) can be sent to the Editorial Office for announcement on this website.

Submitted manuscripts should not have been published previously, nor be under consideration for publication elsewhere (except conference proceedings papers). All manuscripts are thoroughly refereed through a single-blind peer-review process. A guide for authors and other relevant information for submission of manuscripts is available on the Instructions for Authors page. Molecules is an international peer-reviewed open access semimonthly journal published by MDPI.

Please visit the Instructions for Authors page before submitting a manuscript. The Article Processing Charge (APC) for publication in this open access journal is 2700 CHF (Swiss Francs). Submitted papers should be well formatted and use good English. Authors may use MDPI's English editing service prior to publication or during author revisions.

Keywords

Apis mellifera
probiotic potential
antiviral potential
fermented bee products
heavy metals
bioactive compounds
validated methods
biological activities
pesticides
antibiotics
microorganisms

Published Papers (4 papers)

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Research

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Open AccessArticle

Chemical Profiling and Nutritional Evaluation of Bee Pollen, Bee Bread, and Royal Jelly and Their Role in Functional Fermented Dairy Products

and

Molecules 2023, 28(1), 227; https://doi.org/10.3390/molecules28010227 - 27 Dec 2022

Cited by 7 | Viewed by 2440

Abstract

Honeybee products, as multicomponent substances, have been a focus of great interest. The present work aimed to perform the nutritional and chemical profiling and biochemical characterization of bee pollen (BP), bee bread (BB), and royal jelly (RJ) and study their applications in the fortification of functional fermented dairy products. Their effects on starter cultures and the physicochemical and sensorial quality of products were monitored. A molecular networking analysis identified a total of 46 compounds in the three bee products that could be potential medicines, including flavonoids, fatty acids, and peptides. BB showed the highest protein and sugar contents (22.57 and 26.78 g/100 g), which cover 45.14 and 53.56% of their daily values (DVs), with considerable amounts of the essential amino acids threonine and lysine (59.50 and 42.03%). BP, BB, and RJ can be considered sources of iron, as 100 g can cover 141, 198.5, and 94.94% of DV%, respectively. BP was revealed to have the highest phenolic and flavonoid contents (105.68 and 43.91 µg/g) and showed a synergetic effect when mixed with RJ, resulting in increased antioxidant activity, while BB showed a synergetic effect when mixed with RJ in terms of both antioxidant and proteolytic powers (IC₅₀ 7.54, 11.55, 12.15, 12.50, and 12.65 cP compared to the control (10.55 cP)), reflecting their organoleptic properties and highlighting these health-oriented products as promising natural products for human health care. Full article

(This article belongs to the Special Issue Quality Control of Bee Products: Functional and Chemical Properties)

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Open AccessArticle

Characterisation of Bee Pollen from the Marche Region (Italy) According to the Botanical and Geographical Origin with Analysis of Antioxidant Activity and Colour, Using a Chemometric Approach

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Molecules 2022, 27(22), 7996; https://doi.org/10.3390/molecules27227996 - 18 Nov 2022

Cited by 1 | Viewed by 870

Abstract

Attempts have often been made to isolate and characterise monofloral pollens to correlate nutritional with botanical properties. Nevertheless, pollen harvested in a particular area that can have a high biodiversity could have healthier properties. In addition, the analysis of the pollen’s botanical composition can be important for characterising the typical flora of a specific geographical area. On this basis, various pollens collected in different locations of the Marche region (Italy) and in different harvesting periods were analyzed for botanical composition and antioxidant (total phenolic content, ABTS, DPPH and ORAC tests), granulometry and colour (CIE L*a*b*) properties to evaluate the biodiversity of pollen sources within a particular geographical area and to correlate this to the nutraceutical characteristics. Antioxidant activity results showed values generally higher than those of monofloral pollens harvested in the same areas but manually separated according to colour, shape and size. This suggests that even the floral species present in low percentages may have an influence on the nutraceutical properties of these products. The multivariate statistical elaboration of the obtained results permitted the separation of samples containing a prevalent botanical species and the grouping of all the samples into separate clusters corresponding to different areas of Marche. Full article

(This article belongs to the Special Issue Quality Control of Bee Products: Functional and Chemical Properties)

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Open AccessArticle

Chemical Composition, Antioxidant and Antimicrobial Activity of Some Types of Honey from Banat Region, Romania

Roxana Nicoleta Lazăr

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Molecules 2022, 27(13), 4179; https://doi.org/10.3390/molecules27134179 - 29 Jun 2022

Cited by 3 | Viewed by 1657

Abstract

Honey is a natural product with multiple health benefits. The paper presents the chemical characterization and the antioxidant and antimicrobial potential of ten types of honey (knotweed, linden, wild cherry, acacia, honeydew, oilseed rape, sunflower, phacelia, plain polyflora and hill polyflora) from the Banat region, Romania. We studied the water content, dry matter, impurities, acidity and pH of honey. We also determined the content of reducing sugar, minerals and flavonoids and the total phenolic content. All honey samples analysed showed good nutritional characteristics according to the standard codex for honey. From the analysis of the mineral content of the honey samples, we observed a variability in the macro and microminerals, influenced by the botanical origin, ranging between 0.25% (wild cherry honey) and 0.54% (honeydew). The toxic metals’ (Cd and Pb) levels met the standard for almost all samples analysed except for knotweed. The flavonoid content of the samples ranged from 9.29 mg QE/100 g for wild cherry honey to 263.86 mg QE/100 g for linden honey, and for polyphenols between 177.6 mgGAE/100 g for acacia honey and 1159.3 mgGAE/100 g for honeydew. The best antioxidant capacity was registered in the case of linden honey (79.89%) and honeydew (79.20%) and the weakest in acacia (41.88%) and wild cherries (50.4%). All studied honey samples showed antimicrobial activity, depending on the type of honey, concentration and strain analysed. The novelty of this study is given by the complex approach of the study of honey quality, both from the perspective of chemical attributes and the evaluation of the antimicrobial potential on specific strains in correlation with the botanical and geographical origin of the analyzed area. Full article

(This article belongs to the Special Issue Quality Control of Bee Products: Functional and Chemical Properties)

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Review

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Open AccessReview

Current Status of the Bioactive Properties of Royal Jelly: A Comprehensive Review with a Focus on Its Anticancer, Anti-Inflammatory, and Antioxidant Effects

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Daniel Severus Dezmirean

Molecules 2023, 28(3), 1510; https://doi.org/10.3390/molecules28031510 - 03 Feb 2023

Cited by 3 | Viewed by 2908

Abstract

Royal jelly (RJ) has been one of the most widely used natural products in alternative medicine for centuries. Being produced by both hypopharyngeal and mandibular glands, RJ exhibits an extraordinary complexity in terms of its composition, including proteins, lipids, carbohydrates, polyphenols, vitamins, and hormones. Due to its heterogeneous structure, RJ displays various functional roles for honeybees, including being involved in nutrition, learning, memory, and social behavior. Furthermore, a wide range of studies reported its therapeutic properties, including anticancer, anti-inflammatory, and antioxidant activities, to name a few. In this direction, there is a wide range of health-related problems for which the medical area specialists and researchers are continuously trying to find a cure, such as cancer, atherosclerosis, or infertility. For the mentioned diseases and more, it has been proven that RJ is a key player in finding a valuable treatment. In this review, the great impact of RJ as an alternative medicine agent is highlighted, with a focus on its anticancer, anti-inflammatory, and antioxidant activities. Moreover, we link it to its apitherapeutic potential by discussing its composition. Herein, we discuss a wide range of novel studies and present the latest research work. Full article

(This article belongs to the Special Issue Quality Control of Bee Products: Functional and Chemical Properties)

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Special Issue "Quality Control of Bee Products: Functional and Chemical Properties"

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