Phytochemistry, metabolism, and ethnomedical scenario of honey: A concurrent review

Abstract

Honey is a natural domestic sweet food material and a chemically diverse superfluous product of nectar acquired from flowers. Owing to the presence of higher amounts of antioxidant compounds covering phenolic, enzymes, organic acids, and bioactive peptides, it holds a strong ability to prevent various maladies. In addition, honey has also been exploited in certain cardiovascular, gastrointestinal, neoplastic, and inflammatory states along with its role in the treatment of copious infections and surgical wounds. Flavonoids and polyphenols are important bioactive components present in honey and have antioxidant properties. Some bioactive compounds, for example luteolin, galangin, isorhamnetin, quercetin, and kaempferol, are present in honey. Phenolic acids and flavonoids have important pharmacological activities such as anti-allergic, anti-biotic, anticarcinogenic, and hypoglycaemic. Moreover, curative potential of bioactive components and their utilisation in value added food products are also the limelight of this article. ARTICLE HISTORY

Chemical composition and biological properties of aromatic compounds in honey: An overview

“…Carbohydrates, fats, and proteins are important constituents contributing to honey proximate composition in the context of nutritional values (Ahmad, Hussain, Saeed, Waheed, & Tufail, ; EL Sohaimy, Masry, & Shehata, ; Kadri, Zaluski, & DE Oliveira Orsi, ; Solayman et al, ; Tomás, Falcão, Russo‐Almeida, & Vilas‐Boas, ). Honey also contains every essential amino acids and all nonessential amino acids except for glutamine and asparagine (National Nutrient Database for Standard Reference, ).…”

Influence of intravenous Egyptian fennel honey infusion on the antioxidant activities and some haemo-indices in healthy goats

“…Similar these positive results were obtained in healthy tested models as with Malaysian honeys (nenas H. in healthy university student, 14 gelam H. in young and aged rats 57 or with tualang H. in normal male mice 56 ). Moreover,the increased GPX and SOD with the decreased MDA was obtained with Malayian tualang honey in stressed oxidative smokers 58 or female athletes 61 and in animal induced stress oxidative ovariectomized 59 or diabetic rats. 60 Otherwise, Iranian multifloral honey 62 ameliorated the increased MDA content and reduced the activity of SOD in stressed oxidative rats due to the inhibition of pro -inflammatory cytokines: TNF-, IL-1 , and IL-6 by the action of the polyphenols, flavonoids, and caffeic acid phenethyl ester.…”

Propolis, Bee Honey, and Their Components Protect against Coronavirus Disease 2019 (COVID-19): A Review of In Silico, In Vitro, and Clinical Studies

“…Honey promotes health by supporting the growth of healthy intestinal microflora and inhibiting the survival and activity of harmful endobacteria [ 19 , 37 ]. These effects are closely related to its low pH [ 62 ], high content of prebiotics such as oligosaccharides [ 73 , 74 ], and major species of beneficial lactic acid bacteria (LAB) such as Bifidobacterium , Fructobacillus , and Lactobacillaceae (e.g., Lactobacillus kunkeei —the most common species and the most potent in inhibiting pathogens highly resistant to antibiotics) [ 37 , 75 ]. Furthermore, 16S rRNA gene sequencing and MALDI-TOF along with UHPLC–ESI-MS/MS coupled to quadrupole orbitrap indicate that the shedding of cell membranes of dead LAB in honey (e.g., Bacillus subtilis and Bacillus cereus ) represents the main source of its long-chain menaquinones content, subtypes of vitamin K 2 [ 76 ], which demonstrate a range of health benefits (other than promoting coagulation) such as protecting against neurodegenerative disorders by contributing to the metabolism of myelin sulfatides in the brain [ 77 ].…”