engleski

Antimicrobial potential of Croatian honey: Is there possibility to treat certain conditions?

Honey has remarkable therapeutic potential and it has been used as a remedy for thousands of years. Recently, apitherapy came in the focus of attention as an alternative medicine for treating certain conditions and diseases, especially infections. Antimicrobial activity of honey seems promising, although depending on its origin (content of phenolic compounds, polyphenols, e.g. flavonoids and phenolic acid, proteins). To address this we exposed several bacteria (E. coli, H. pylori, Mycobacterium fortuitum, Staph. aureus) and one yeast (C. albicans) to honey samples from different floral sources and geographical locations in Croatia in order to evaluate the ability of honey to inhibit their the growth. The bioassay applied was the serial twofold microdilution method with TTC/formazan endpoint) to determine minimum inhibitory concentrations (MIC). The total phenolic content was screened by the modified Folin-Ciocalteu method and the antioxidant activity by the 1, 1-diphenyl-2-picrylhydrazyl (DPPH) radical scavenging system and ferric reducing antioxidant power assay (FRAP). In addition, the colour and pH of honey samples were analyzed. In general Gram-negative bacteria were found to be more susceptible in comparison to Gram-positive bacteria, while most of the honey samples had no significant effects on C. albicans. The antimicrobial activity of samples depends mostly upon floral source but there were large differences among samples of the same origin. Most tested microbial species have MIC values in the range of 0.1-0.25 mg of honey per ml. Phenolic content ranged from 34.2 to 261.4 mg GAE/kg and were highly correlated to honey antioxidant capacity. This study gives an overview of specific honeys having good antibacterial activity against microorganisms easily accessible and therefore can provide a complementary and/or alternative therapy in certain conditions. Moreover, we characterized the antioxidant potential and phenolic content of honey samples with regard to its potential therapeutic efficacy. Namely, antioxidant potential correlated to phenolic and flavonoids content of honey samples and it is hypothesized that antioxidant capacity is responsible, at least in part, for deterimed biological activity honey samples.

honey; antimicrobial activity; microdilution method; phenolic content; flavonoids; antioxidant activity; DPPH; FRAP

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