Due to the variation of botanical origin honey differs in appearance, sensory perception and composition. The main nutritional and health relevant components are carbohydrates, mainly fructose and glucose but also about 25 different oligosaccharides. Although honey is a high carbohydrate food, its glycemic index varies within a wide range from 32 to 85, depending on the botanical source. It contains small amounts of proteins, enzymes, amino acids, minerals, trace elements, vitamins, aroma compounds and polyphenols. The review covers the composition, the nutritional contribution of its components, its physiological and nutritional effects. It shows that honey has a variety of positive nutritional and health effects, if consumed at higher doses of 50 to 80 g per intake.

Honey for Nutrition and Health: A Review

Biofilms are widespread in nature and constitute an important strategy implemented by microorganisms to survive in sometimes harsh environmental conditions. They can be beneficial or have a negative impact particularly when formed in industrial settings or on medical devices. As such, research into the formation and elimination of biofilms is important for many disciplines. Several new methodologies have been recently developed for, or adapted to, biofilm studies that have contributed to deeper knowledge on biofilm physiology, structure and composition. In this review, traditional and cutting-edge methods to study biofilm biomass, viability, structure, composition and physiology are addressed. Moreover, as there is a lack of consensus among the diversity of techniques used to grow and study biofilms. This review intends to remedy this, by giving a critical perspective, highlighting the advantages and limitations of several methods. Accordingly, this review aims at helping scientists in finding the most appropriate and up-to-date methods to study their biofilms.

https://tandfonline.com/doi/pdf/10.1080/1040841X.2016.1208146

Critical review on biofilm methods

Indeed, medicinal importance of honey has been documented in the world's oldest medical literatures, and since the ancient times, it has been known to possess antimicrobial property as well as wound-healing activity. The healing property of honey is due to the fact that it offers antibacterial activity, maintains a moist wound condition, and its high viscosity helps to provide a protective barrier to prevent infection. Its immunomodulatory property is relevant to wound repair too. The antimicrobial activity in most honeys is due to the enzymatic production of hydrogen peroxide. However, another kind of honey, called non-peroxide honey (viz., manuka honey), displays significant antibacterial effects even when the hydrogen peroxide activity is blocked. Its mechanism may be related to the low pH level of honey and its high sugar content (high osmolarity) that is enough to hinder the growth of microbes. The medical grade honeys have potent in vitro bactericidal activity against antibiotic-resistant bacteria causing several life-threatening infections to humans. But, there is a large variation in the antimicrobial activity of some natural honeys, which is due to spatial and temporal variation in sources of nectar. Thus, identification and characterization of the active principle(s) may provide valuable information on the quality and possible therapeutic potential of honeys (against several health disorders of humans), and hence we discussed the medicinal property of honeys with emphasis on their antibacterial activities.

Honey: its medicinal property and antibacterial activity

Isolated from a wide range of sources, the genus Paenibacillus comprises bacterial species relevant to humans, animals, plants, and the environment. Many Paenibacillus species can promote crop growth directly via biological nitrogen fixation, phosphate solubilization, production of the phytohormone indole-3-acetic acid (IAA), and release of siderophores that enable iron acquisition. They can also offer protection against insect herbivores and phytopathogens, including bacteria, fungi, nematodes, and viruses. This is accomplished by the production of a variety of antimicrobials and insecticides, and by triggering a hypersensitive defensive response of the plant, known as induced systemic resistance (ISR). Paenibacillus-derived antimicrobials also have applications in medicine, including polymyxins and fusaricidins, which are nonribosomal lipopeptides first isolated from strains of Paenibacillus polymyxa. Other useful molecules include exo-polysaccharides (EPS) and enzymes such as amylases, cellulases, hemicellulases, lipases, pectinases, oxygenases, dehydrogenases, lignin-modifying enzymes, and mutanases, which may have applications for detergents, food and feed, textiles, paper, biofuel, and healthcare. On the negative side, Paenibacillus larvae is the causative agent of American Foulbrood, a lethal disease of honeybees, while a variety of species are opportunistic infectors of humans, and others cause spoilage of pasteurized dairy products. This broad review summarizes the major positive and negative impacts of Paenibacillus: its realised and prospective contributions to agriculture, medicine, process manufacturing, and bioremediation, as well as its impacts due to pathogenicity and food spoilage. This review also includes detailed information in Additional files 1, 2, 3 for major known Paenibacillus species with their locations of isolation, genome sequencing projects, patents, and industrially significant compounds and enzymes. Paenibacillus will, over time, play increasingly important roles in sustainable agriculture and industrial biotechnology.

https://link.springer.com/content/pdf/10.1186%2Fs12934-016-0603-7.pdf

Current knowledge and perspectives of Paenibacillus : a review

Standardization of antioxidant properties of honey by a combination of spectrophotometric/fluorimetric assays and chemometrics

The widespread existence of unhealed wounds, ulcers, and burns has a great impact on public health and economy. Many interventions, including new medications and technologies, are being used to help achieve significant wound healing and to eliminate infections. Therefore, to find an intervention that has both therapeutic effect on the healing process and the ability to kill microbes is of great value. Honey is a natural product that has been recently introduced in modern medical practice. Honey's antibacterial properties and its effects on wound healing have been thoroughly investigated. Laboratory studies and clinical trials have shown that honey is an effective broad-spectrum antibacterial agent. This paper reviews data that support the effectiveness of natural honey in wound healing and its ability to sterilize infected wounds. Studies on the therapeutic effects of honey collected in different geographical areas on skin wounds, skin and gastric ulcers, and burns are reviewed and mechanisms of action are discussed. (Ulcers and burns are included as an example of challenging wounds.) The data show that the wound healing properties of honey include stimulation of tissue growth, enhanced epithelialization, and minimized scar formation. These effects are ascribed to honey's acidity, hydrogen peroxide content, osmotic effect, nutritional and antioxidant contents, stimulation of immunity, and to unidentified compounds. Prostaglandins and nitric oxide play a major role in inflammation, microbial killing, and the healing process. Honey was found to lower prostaglandin levels and elevate nitric oxide end products. These properties might help to explain some biological and therapeutic properties of honey, particularly as an antibacterial agent or wound healer. The data presented here demonstrate that honeys from different geographical areas have considerable therapeutic effects on chronic wounds, ulcers, and burns. The results encourage the use of honey in clinical practice as a natural and safe wound healer.

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Honey for wound healing, ulcers, and burns; data supporting its use in clinical practice.

This study included the following experiments: (1) effects of dextrose solution (250 mL of water containing 75 g of dextrose) or honey solution (250 mL of water containing 75 g of natural honey) on plasma glucose level (PGL), plasma insulin, and plasma C-peptide (eight subjects); (2) effects of dextrose, honey, or artificial honey (250 mL of water containing 35 g of dextrose and 40 g of fructose) on cholesterol and triglycerides (TG) (nine subjects); (3) effects of honey solution, administered for 15 days, on PGL, blood lipids, C-reactive protein (CRP), and homocysteine (eight subjects); (4) effects of honey or artificial honey on cholesterol and TG in six patients with hypercholesterolemia and five patients with hypertriglyceridemia; (5) effects of honey for 15 days on blood lipid and CRP in five patients with elevated cholesterol and CRP; (6) effects of 70 g of dextrose or 90 g of honey on PGL in seven patients with type 2 diabetes mellitus; and (7) effects of 30 g of sucrose or 30 g of honey on PGL, pl...

Natural Honey Lowers Plasma Glucose, C-Reactive Protein, Homocysteine, and Blood Lipids in Healthy, Diabetic, and Hyperlipidemic Subjects: Comparison with Dextrose and Sucrose

Agricultural contamination with pesticides and antibiotics is a challenging problem that needs to be fully addressed. Bee products, such as honey, are widely consumed as food and medicine and their contamination may carry serious health hazards. Honey and other bee products are polluted by pesticides, heavy metals, bacteria and radioactive materials. Pesticide residues cause genetic mutations and cellular degradation and presence of antibiotics might increase resistant human or animal's pathogens. Many cases of infant botulisms have been attributed to contaminated honey. Honey may be very toxic when produced from certain plants. Ingestion of honey without knowing its source and safety might be problematic. Honey should be labeled to explore its origin, composition, and clear statement that it is free from contaminants. Honey that is not subjected for analysis and sterilization should not be used in infants, and should not be applied to wounds or used for medicinal purposes. This article reviews the extent and health impact of honey contamination and stresses on the introduction of a strict monitoring system and validation of acceptable minimal concentrations of pollutants or identifying maximum residue limits for bee products, in particular, honey.

/pdf/antibiotic-pesticide-and-microbial-contaminants-of-honey-34wg1eq0w0.pdf

Antibiotic, Pesticide, and Microbial Contaminants of Honey: Human Health Hazards

It has been found that honey ameliorates cardiovascular risk factors in healthy individuals and in patients with elevated risk factors. The present study investigated the effect of natural honey on total cholesterol, low-density lipoprotein cholesterol (LDL-C), high-density lipoprotein cholesterol (HDL-C), triacylglycerole, C-reactive protein (CRP), fasting blood glucose (FBG), and body weight in overweight individuals. There were 55 patients, overweight or obese, who were randomly recruited into the study and assigned into two groups: control group (17 subjects) and experimental group (38 subjects). Patients in the control group received 70 g of sucrose daily for a maximum of 30 days and patients in the experimental group received 70 g of natural honey for the same period. In the control and experimental groups, body weight, body mass index, body fat weight, total cholesterol, LDL-C, HDL-C, triacylglycerole, FBG, and CRP were measured before treatment and at day 31 after the commencement of treatment. Results showed that honey caused a mild reduction in body weight (1.3%) and body fat (1.1%). Honey reduced total cholesterol (3%), LDL-C (5.8), triacylglycerole (11%), FBG (4.2%), and CRP (3.2%), and increased HDL-C (3.3%) in subjects with normal values, while in patients with elevated variables, honey caused reduction in total cholesterol by 3.3%, LDL-C by 4.3%, triacylglycerole by 19%, and CRP by 3.3% (p < 0.05). It is our conclusion that consumption of natural honey reduces cardiovascular risk factors, particularly in subjects with elevated risk factors, and it does not increase body weight in overweight or obese subjects.

/pdf/natural-honey-and-cardiovascular-risk-factors-effects-on-2vu9uavm3m.pdf

Natural honey and cardiovascular risk factors; effects on blood glucose, cholesterol, triacylglycerole, CRP, and body weight compared with sucrose.

Antimicrobial activities of 10–100% (wt/vol) concentrations of new honey, stored honey, heated honey, ultraviolet-exposed honey, and heated stored honey were tested against common human pathogens, including Escherichia coli, Entrobacter cloacae, Pseudomonas aeruginosa, Shigella dysenteriae, Klebsiella sp., Haemophilus influenzae, Proteus sp., Staphylococcus aureus, Streptococcus hemolyticus group B, and Candida albicans. Antimicrobial activity of honey was tested in acidic, neutral, or alkaline media. These were compared with similar concentrations of glucose in nutrient broth. Surgical wounds were made on the dorsum of mice and infected with S. aureus or Klebsiella sp. The wounds were treated with local application of honey four times a day or appropriate antibiotics and compared with control values. Bacterial conjunctivitis due to E. coli, Proteus sp., S. aureus, Klebsiella sp., and P. aeruginosa was induced in rats. Conjunctival application of honey four times a day or appropriate antibiotics was used ...

Noori S. Al-Waili

Papers

Honey for wound healing, ulcers, and burns; data supporting its use in clinical practice.

Natural Honey Lowers Plasma Glucose, C-Reactive Protein, Homocysteine, and Blood Lipids in Healthy, Diabetic, and Hyperlipidemic Subjects: Comparison with Dextrose and Sucrose

Antibiotic, Pesticide, and Microbial Contaminants of Honey: Human Health Hazards

Natural honey and cardiovascular risk factors; effects on blood glucose, cholesterol, triacylglycerole, CRP, and body weight compared with sucrose.

Investigating the Antimicrobial Activity of Natural Honey and Its Effects on the Pathogenic Bacterial Infections of Surgical Wounds and Conjunctiva