Abstract
Honeybees directly transfer plant compounds from nectar into honey. Each plant species possesses a specific metabolic profile, the amount and the typology of plant molecules that may be detected in honey vary according to their botanical origin. Aim of the present work was the spectrophotometrical determination of concentration ranges of simple phenols and flavonoids in 460 several Italian monofloral honeys, in order to individuate specific intervals of plant metabolites for each typology of honey. Moreover, an LC–MS analysis was performed to determine amount of various secondary metabolites in the samples, with the purpose to use them as potential molecular markers in support to honey melissopalynological classification. As plant molecules have a strong reducing power, the antioxidant activity of the honeys was evaluated by two antiradical assays, DPPH and FRAP. The free radical scavenging effect of each monofloral group was correlated to the concentration of simple phenols and flavonoids, with the aim to deduce the existence of possible relationships between these parameters. In conclusion, dark honeys (Castanea sativa, honeydew, Erica sp. and Eucalyptus sp.) appeared to be the richest in secondary metabolites and, consequently, showed higher antioxidant activity. However, all analyzed monofloral honeys showed to be good sources of antioxidants.
Similar content being viewed by others
References
Balasundram N, Sundram K, Samman S (2006) Phenolic compounds in plants and agri-industrial by-products: antioxidant activity, occurrence, and potential uses. Food Chem 99(1):191–203
Benzie IF, Strain JJ (1996) The ferric reducing ability of plasma (FRAP) as a measure of “antioxidant power”: the FRAP assay. Anal Biochem 239(1):70–76
Beretta G, Granata P, Ferrero M, Orioli M, Facino RM (2005) Standardization of antioxidant properties of honey by a combination of spectrophotometric/fluorimetric assays and chemometrics. Anal Chim Acta 533(2):185–191
Bertoncelj J, Doberšek U, Jamnik M, Golob T (2007) Evaluation of the phenolic content, antioxidant activity and colour of Slovenian honey. Food Chem 105(2):822–828
Bertoncelj J, Polak T, Kropf U, Korošec M, Golob T (2011) LC-DAD-ESI/MS analysis of flavonoids and abscisic acid with chemometric approach for the classification of Slovenian honey. Food Chem 127(1):296–302
Bogdanov S, Jurendic T, Sieber R, Gallmann P (2008) Honey for nutrition and health: a review. J Am Coll Nutr 27(6):677–689
Cai YZ, Sun M, Xing J, Luo Q, Corke H (2006) Structure–radical scavenging activity relationships of phenolic compounds from traditional Chinese medicinal plants. Life Sci 78(25):2872–2888
Can Z, Yildiz O, Sahin H, Turumtay EA, Silici S, Kolayli S (2015) An investigation of Turkish honeys: their physico-chemical properties, antioxidant capacities and phenolic profiles. Food Chem 180:133–141
Crozier A, Clifford MN, Ashihara H (2008) Plant secondary metabolites: occurrence, structure and role in the human diet. In: Crozier A, Clifford MN, Ashihara H (eds) Plant secondary metabolites: occurrence, structure and role in the human diet, Blackwell edn. Wiley, New York
Di Marco G, Canuti L, Impei S, Leonardi D, Canini A (2012) Nutraceutical properties of honey and pollen produced in a natural park. Agric Sci 3(2):187
Di Marco G, Gismondi A, Canuti L, Scimeca M, Volpe A, Canini A (2014) Tetracycline accumulates in Iberis sempervirens L. through apoplastic transport inducing oxidative stress and growth inhibition. Plant Biol 16(4):792–800
Di Marco G, Manfredini A, Leonardi D, Canuti L, Impei S, Gismondi A, Canini A (2016) Geographical, botanical and chemical profile of monofloral Italian honeys as food quality guarantee and territory brand. Plant Biosyst 151(3):450–463
Dudareva N, Pichersky E (2008) Metabolic engineering of plant volatiles. Curr Opin Biotechnol 19(2):181–189
Ferreres F, Pereira DM, Valentao P, Andrade PB, Seabra RM, Sottomayor M (2008) New phenolic compounds and antioxidant potential of Catharanthus roseus. J Agric Food Chem 56(21):9967–9974
Fiehn O (2002) Metabolomics—the link between genotypes and phenotypes. Plant Mol Biol 48(1–2):155–171
Genovese S, Taddeo VA, Fiorito S, Epifano F (2016) Quantification of 4′-geranyloxyferulic acid (GOFA) in honey samples of different origin by validated RP-HPLC-UV method. J Pharm Biomed Anal 117:577–580
Gismondi A, Canuti L, Impei S, Di Marco G, Kenzo M, Colizzi V, Canini A (2013) Antioxidant extracts of African medicinal plants induce cell cycle arrest and differentiation in B16F10 melanoma cells. Int J Oncol 43(3):956–964
Gismondi A, Canuti L, Grispo M, Canini A (2014) Biochemical composition and antioxidant properties of Lavandula angustifolia Miller essential oil are shielded by propolis against UV radiations. Photochem Photobiol 90(3):702–708 [Erratum Photochem Photobiol 90(5):1214]
Gismondi A, Di Marco G, Canuti L, Canini A (2017a) Antiradical activity of phenolic metabolites extracted from grapes of white and red Vitis vinifera L. cultivars. Vitis 56:19–26
Gismondi A, Di Marco G, Canini A (2017b) Detection of plant microRNAs in honey. PLoS ONE 12(2):e0172981
Impei S, Gismondi A, Canuti L, Canini A (2015) Metabolic and biological profile of autochthonous Vitis vinifera L. ecotypes. Food Funct 6(5):1526–1538
Jaganathan SK, Mandal M (2009) Antiproliferative effects of honey and of its polyphenols: a review. Biomed Res Int 2009:1–13
Kaufman PB, Cseke LJ, Warber S, Duke JA, Brielmann HL (1999) Natural products from plants. In: Cseke LJ, Kirakosyan A, Kaufman PB, Warber S, Duke JA, Brielmann HL (eds) Natural products from plants, 2nd edn. CRC Press, Boca Raton, pp 183–205
Klimczak I, Małecka M, Szlachta M, Gliszczyńska-Świgło A (2007) Effect of storage on the content of polyphenols, vitamin C and the antioxidant activity of orange juices. J Food Compos Anal 20(3):313–322
Meda A, Lamien CE, Romito M, Millogo J, Nacoulma OG (2005) Determination of the total phenolic, flavonoid and proline contents in Burkina Fasan honey, as well as their radical scavenging activity. Food Chem 91(3):571–577
Muhammad A, Odunola OA, Ibrahim MA, Sallau AB, Erukainure OL, Aimola IA, Malami I (2016) Potential biological activity of acacia honey. Front Biosci (Elite Ed) 8:351–357
Pichichero E, Canuti L, Canini A (2009) Characterisation of the phenolic and flavonoid fractions and antioxidant power of Italian honeys of different botanical origin. J Sci Food Agric 89(4):609–616
Pichichero E, Cicconi R, Mattei M, Muzi MG, Canini A (2010) Acacia honey and chrysin reduce proliferation of melanoma cells through alterations in cell cycle progression. Int J Oncol 37(4):973
Pichichero E, Cicconi R, Mattei M, Canini A (2011) Chrysin-induced apoptosis is mediated through p38 and Bax activation in B16-F1 and A375 melanoma cells. Int J Oncol 38(2):473
Raskin I, Ribnicky DM, Komarnytsky S, Ilic N, Poulev A, Borisjuk N, Brinker A, Moreno DA, Ripoll C, Yakobv N, O’Neal JM, Cornwell T, Pastor I, Fridlender B (2002) Plants and human health in the twenty-first century. Trends Biotechnol 20(12):522–531
Tahir HE, Xiaobo Z, Zhihua L, Jiyong S, Zhai X, Wang S, Mariod AA (2017) Rapid prediction of phenolic compounds and antioxidant activity of Sudanese honey using Raman and Fourier transform infrared (FT-IR) spectroscopy. Food Chem 226:202–211
Vela L, de Lorenzo C, Perez RA (2007) Antioxidant capacity of Spanish honeys and its correlation with polyphenol content and other physicochemical properties. J Sci Food Agric 87(6):1069–1075
Yaniv Z, Rudich M (1997) Medicinal herbs as a potential source of high-quality honeys. In: Mizrahi A, Lensky Y (eds) Bee products, 1st edn. Springer, US, pp 77–81
Acknowledgements
The present research was funded by Regione Lazio through FILAS-RU-2014-1122 project (SMART CAMPUS PROGRAM, “Analisi qualità delle materie prime, origine e verifica di contaminazione di alimenti vegetali”, code F1-2016-0069, CUP: E82I15000980002), and by Italian Beekeepers’ Federation (FAI) through MIPAAF FAI-LIGUSTICA program (AZIONE MELITAPIS). The authors also thank Dr. Simona Iacobelli and Dr. Giulia Sbianchi for their assistance in statistical analysis. The authors state no conflict of interest about the present work.
Author information
Authors and Affiliations
Corresponding author
Rights and permissions
About this article
Cite this article
Di Marco, G., Gismondi, A., Panzanella, L. et al. Botanical influence on phenolic profile and antioxidant level of Italian honeys. J Food Sci Technol 55, 4042–4050 (2018). https://doi.org/10.1007/s13197-018-3330-8
Revised:
Accepted:
Published:
Issue Date:
DOI: https://doi.org/10.1007/s13197-018-3330-8