TY - JOUR
T1 - The bioactive, antioxidant, antibacterial, and physicochemical properties of a range of commercially available Australian honeys
AU - Hunter, Maddison
AU - Ghildyal, Reena
AU - D'Cunha, Nathan M.
AU - Gouws, Caroline
AU - Georgousopoulou, Ekavi N.
AU - Naumovski, Nenad
N1 - Funding Information:
This research was supported by an Australian Government Research Training Program Scholarship for M.H. and C.G.; N.M.D. is supported by a Dementia Australia Research Foundation PhD Scholarship .
Publisher Copyright:
© 2021
PY - 2021
Y1 - 2021
N2 - Honey is a supersaturated sugar solution produced from plant nectar, with its composition influenced by geographic and floral origins, and with several properties contributing to its health-related abilities. This study aimed to determine the bioactive composition, antioxidant characteristics, antibacterial activity, and physicochemical properties of commercial Australian honeys. In total, 42 commercial Australian honeys were selected, and categorised according to front-label descriptions. Honeys were analysed: quality (Hydroxymethylfurfural); colour (colour intensity, L*,a*,b*); bioactive composition (phenolic, flavonoid, and carotenoid content); antioxidant characteristics (DPPH, CUPRAC, FRAP); antibacterial activity (MIC50); physicochemical properties (pH, TSS, viscosity, aw). Colour intensity correlated with each assessed bioactive compound and antioxidant characteristic (p ≤ 0.001). MIC50 (S. aureus) was associated with FRAP and aw, suggesting mechanisms of action for honey's antibacterial activity. Manuka-type honeys had higher colour intensity (1440 (98.5) mAU) than other categories (p ≤ 0.05), and consistently higher bioactive and antioxidant properties. This provides the potential to inform antioxidant-related health outcomes.
AB - Honey is a supersaturated sugar solution produced from plant nectar, with its composition influenced by geographic and floral origins, and with several properties contributing to its health-related abilities. This study aimed to determine the bioactive composition, antioxidant characteristics, antibacterial activity, and physicochemical properties of commercial Australian honeys. In total, 42 commercial Australian honeys were selected, and categorised according to front-label descriptions. Honeys were analysed: quality (Hydroxymethylfurfural); colour (colour intensity, L*,a*,b*); bioactive composition (phenolic, flavonoid, and carotenoid content); antioxidant characteristics (DPPH, CUPRAC, FRAP); antibacterial activity (MIC50); physicochemical properties (pH, TSS, viscosity, aw). Colour intensity correlated with each assessed bioactive compound and antioxidant characteristic (p ≤ 0.001). MIC50 (S. aureus) was associated with FRAP and aw, suggesting mechanisms of action for honey's antibacterial activity. Manuka-type honeys had higher colour intensity (1440 (98.5) mAU) than other categories (p ≤ 0.05), and consistently higher bioactive and antioxidant properties. This provides the potential to inform antioxidant-related health outcomes.
KW - Antibacterial
KW - Antioxidant
KW - Australian commercial honey
KW - Bioactive
KW - Physicochemical
UR - http://www.scopus.com/inward/record.url?scp=85112439755&partnerID=8YFLogxK
U2 - 10.1016/j.crfs.2021.08.002
DO - 10.1016/j.crfs.2021.08.002
M3 - Article
AN - SCOPUS:85112439755
SN - 2665-9271
VL - 4
SP - 532
EP - 542
JO - Current Research in Food Science
JF - Current Research in Food Science
ER -