Commercial Bee Pollen with Different Geographical Origins: A Comprehensive Approach

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Abstract

Since the primordial of humanity, pollen has been considered a good source of nutrients and energy. Its promising healing properties have also been referred to. The present study aimed to characterize, for the first time, eight commercial pollens from Portugal and Spain available on the market studying the legislation on labeling, pollinic origin, physicochemical and microbiological analyses and identification of yeasts. Eleven botanical families were found amongst the samples. The most abundant family and the most dominant pollen was Cistaceae. The moisture content, ash, a _w , pH, reducing sugars, carbohydrates, proteins, lipids and energy were analyzed and the specific parameters were within the specifications required by some countries with legislation regarding these parameters. Microbiologically commercial pollen showed acceptable safety for the commercial quality and hygiene. All samples showed negative results for toxigenic species. The microorganisms studied were aerobic mesophiles, yeasts and moulds, coliforms, Escherichia coli, Staphylococcus aureus, Salmonella and sulfite-reducing Clostridium. During the work, six yeasts species were isolated from pollen, with Rhodotorula mucilaginosa being the most abundant, as it was present in four samples.

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Microorganisms in honey.

Jill Snowdon, Dean Cliver (1996)

Knowledge of the moisture and temperature conditions influencing growth of microorganisms in honey has long been used to control the spoilage of honey. However, the need for additional microbiological data on honey will increase as new technologies for, and uses of honey develop. Microorganisms in honey may influence quality or safety. Due to the natural properties of honey and control measures in the honey industry, honey is a product with minimal types and levels of microbes. Microbes of concern in post-harvest handling are those that are commonly found in honey (i.e., yeasts and spore-forming bacteria), those that indicate the sanitary or commercial quality of honey (i.e., coliforms and yeasts), and those that under certain conditions could cause human illness. Primary sources of microbial contamination are likely to include pollen, the digestive tracts of honey bees, dust, air, earth and nectar, sources which are very difficult to control. The same secondary (after-harvest) sources that influence any food product are also sources of contamination for honey. These include air, food handlers, cross-contamination, equipment and buildings. Secondary sources of contamination are controlled by good manufacturing practices. The microbes of concern in honey are primarily yeasts and spore-forming bacteria. Total plate counts from honey samples can vary from zero to tens of thousands per gram for no apparent reason. Most samples of honey contain detectable levels of yeasts. Although yeast counts in many honey samples are below 100 colony forming units per gram (cfu/g), yeasts can grow in honey to very high numbers. Standard industry practices control yeast growth. Bacterial spores, particularly those in the Bacillus genus, are regularly found in honey. The spores of C. botulinum are found in a fraction of the honey samples tested-normally at low levels. No vegetative forms of disease-causing bacterial species have been found in honey. Bacteria do not replicate in honey and as such high numbers of vegetative bacteria could indicate recent contamination from a secondary source. Certain vegetative microbes can survive in honey, at cool temperatures, for several years. However, honey has anti-microbial properties that discourage the growth or persistence of many microorganisms. Typically, honey can be expected to contain low numbers and a limited variety of microbes. A routine microbiological examination of honey might include several different assays. A standard plate count provides general information. Specialized tests, such as a count of yeasts and an assay for bacterial spore-formers, may also be useful. An indicator of sanitary quality as provided by coliform counts might be included. Additional tests, to explain unusually high counts or address a certain problem, may be needed. The use of honey in products that receive no or limited heat treatment may require additional tests. More information on the source and control of microbes in honey is needed to answer the concerns currently facing the industry.

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Honeybee-collected pollen from five Portuguese Natural Parks: palynological origin, phenolic content, antioxidant properties and antimicrobial activity.

Margarida Morais, Leandro Moreira, Xesús Feás … (2011)

The aim of this study was to determine the palynological origin, phenolic content, antioxidant and antimicrobial properties of pollen from five Portuguese Natural-Parks [Parque Nacional Peneda Gerês (PNPG); Parque Natural do Montesinho (PNM); Parque Natural do Alvão (PNA); Parque Natural da Serra da Estrela (PNSE) and Parque Natural do Douro Internacional (PNDI)]. Eight families were found in the mixture of bee pollen: Rosaceae, Cistaceae, Boraginaceae, Asteraceae, Fagaceae, Ericaeae, Myrtaceae and Fabaceae. The phenolic compounds content, determined by the Folin-Ciocalteu method, varied between 10.5 and 16.8 mg of gallic acid equivalents/g of extract (mg GAE/g) found in bee pollen from PNM and PNDI, respectively. The free radical scavenging measured showed the highest effective extract - PNM with EC(50) 2.16, followed by PND with 2.24 mg/mL. In the β-carotene bleaching assay the same behaviour as in the DPPH method was verified. We also verified that the presence of pollen differentially affected the growth of bacteria Gram-positive, Gram-negative and yeasts under study, depending this on the microorganism and the pollen used. This is an important study since, as far we know, it is the first time that Portuguese bee pollen from Natural Parks was studied, and their characterization can increase their economic value. Copyright © 2011. Published by Elsevier Ltd.

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Radical scavenging activity of different floral origin honey and beebread phenolic extracts

Violeta Čeksterytė, Vilma Baltrušaitytė, Petras Venskutonis (2007)

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Author and article information

Journal

Journal ID (nlm-ta): Int J Mol Sci

Journal ID (iso-abbrev): Int J Mol Sci

Journal ID (publisher-id): ijms

Title: International Journal of Molecular Sciences

Publisher: Molecular Diversity Preservation International (MDPI)

ISSN (Electronic): 1422-0067

Publication date Collection: 2012

Publication date (Electronic): 07 September 2012

Volume: 13

Issue: 9

Pages: 11173-11187

Affiliations

[1 ]CIMO-Mountain Research Center, Agricultural College of Bragança, Polytechnic Institute of Bragança, Campus Santa Apolónia, Bragança 5301-855, Portugal; E-Mail: carla.m.p.nogueira@ 123456hotmail.com

[2 ]Department of Anatomy and Animal Production, Faculty of Veterinary, University of Santiago de Compostela, Lugo 27002, Galicia, Spain; E-Mail: antonio.iglesias@ 123456usc.es

[3 ]Department of Organic Chemistry, Faculty of Sciences, University of Santiago de Compostela, Lugo 27002, Galicia, Spain; E-Mail: xesus.feas@ 123456usc.es

Author notes

[* ]Author to whom correspondence should be addressed; E-Mail: leticia@ 123456ipb.pt ; Tel.:+351-273-303-342.

[†]

These authors contributed equally to this work.

Article

Publisher ID: ijms-13-11173

DOI: 10.3390/ijms130911173

PMC ID: 3472737

PubMed ID: 23109845

SO-VID: 10d2755a-c378-4056-b992-2b042626bcab

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This article is an open-access article distributed under the terms and conditions of the Creative Commons Attribution license ( http://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/3.0/).

Commercial Bee Pollen with Different Geographical Origins: A Comprehensive Approach

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Abstract

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Higher order chromatin architecture

Most cited references 61

Microorganisms in honey.

Honeybee-collected pollen from five Portuguese Natural Parks: palynological origin, phenolic content, antioxidant properties and antimicrobial activity.

Radical scavenging activity of different floral origin honey and beebread phenolic extracts

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