Search Results (6)

Stingless bees (Hymenoptera; Apidae; Meliponini), with a biodiversity of 605 species, harvest and transport corbicula pollen to the nest, like Apis mellifera, but process and store the pollen in cerumen pots instead of beeswax combs. Therefore, the meliponine pollen processed in the nest was named pot-pollen instead of bee bread. Pot-pollen has nutraceutical properties for bees and humans; it is a natural medicinal food supplement with applications in health, food science, and technology, and pharmaceutical developments are promising. Demonstrated synergism between Tetragonisca angustula pot-pollen ethanolic extracts, and antibiotics against extensively drug-resistant (XDR) bacteria revealed potential to combat antimicrobial resistance (AMR). Reviewed pot-pollen VOC richness was compared between Australian Austroplebeia australis (27), Tetragonula carbonaria (31), and Tetragonula hogkingsi (28), as well as the Venezuelan Tetragonisca angustula (95). Bioactivity and olfactory attributes of the most abundant VOCs were revisited. Bibliometric analyses with the Scopus database were planned for two unrelated topics in the literature for potential scientific advances. The top ten most prolific authors, institutions, countries, funding sponsors, and sources engaged to disseminate original research and reviews on pot-pollen (2014–2023) and direct injection food flavor (1976–2023) were ranked. Selected metrics and plots were visualized using the Bibliometrix-R package. A scholarly approach gained scientific insight into the interaction between an ancient fermented medicinal pot-pollen and a powerful bioanalytical technique for fermented products, which should attract interest from research teams for joint projects on direct injection in pot-pollen flavor, and proposals on stingless bee nest materials. Novel anti-antimicrobial-resistant agents and synergism with conventional antibiotics can fill the gap in the emerging potential to overcome antimicrobial resistance. Full article

Cerumen is a bee product produced exclusively by stingless bees, resulting from a mixture of beeswax and plant resins. The antioxidant activity of bee products has been investigated since oxidative stress is associated with the onset and progression of several diseases that can lead to death. In this context, this study aimed to investigate the chemical composition and antioxidant activity of cerumen produced by the Geotrigona sp. and Tetragonisca fiebrigi stingless bees, in vitro and in vivo. The chemical characterization of cerumen extracts was performed by HPLC, GC, and ICP OES analyses. The in vitro antioxidant potential was evaluated by DPPH^• and ABTS^•+ free radical scavenging methods, and in human erythrocytes subjected to oxidative stress with AAPH. In vivo, the antioxidant potential was evaluated in Caenorhabditis elegans nematodes subjected to oxidative stress with juglone. Both cerumen extracts presented phenolic compounds, fatty acids, and metallic minerals in their chemical constitution. The cerumen extracts showed antioxidant activity by capturing free radicals, reducing lipid peroxidation in human erythrocytes, and reducing oxidative stress in C. elegans, observed by the increase in viability. The results obtained indicate that cerumen extracts from Geotrigona sp. and Tetragonisca fiebrigi stingless bees may be promising against oxidative stress and associated diseases. Full article

Stingless bee honey (SBH) is gaining attention due to its nutritional, sensorial, and medicinal characteristics. This study focuses on the combination of physicochemical properties, antioxidant capacity, mineral profile, and mass spectrometry-based fingerprints, using a chemometric approach to differentiate SBH (n = 18) from three different Brazilian biogeographical zones (Caatinga, Cerrado, and Atlantic Forest). The physicochemical properties of SBH varied, resulting in a wide range of water activity, moisture, total soluble solids, pH, and total and free acidity. The Caatinga honey showed the highest and the lowest contents of phenolics and flavonoids, respectively. The antioxidant free-radical scavenging assays demonstrated that the Brazilian SBH has a high antioxidant potential. The mineral profile of honey samples from the Atlantic Forest revealed higher contents of Ca and Fe while the Cerrado and Caatinga honey showed the highest P contents. Partial Least-Squares Discriminant Analysis (PLS-DA) analysis separated the samples into three groups based on the biogeographical zones of harvest. The main separation factors between groups were the m/z 326 ion and the Fe content. Univariate analysis confirmed that Fe content is important for SBH discrimination. The present results indicate that the origin of SBH can be determined on the basis of mineral profile, especially Fe content. Full article

Stingless bees are vital pollinators for both wild and crop plants, yet their communities have been affected and altered by anthropogenic land-use change. Additionally, few studies have directly addressed the consequences of land-use change for meliponines, and knowledge on how their communities change across gradients in surrounding landscape cover remains scarce. Here, we examine both how local and landscape-level compositions as well as forest proximity affect both meliponine species richness and abundance together with pollination networks across 30 mixed fruit orchards in Southern Thailand. The results reveal that most landscape-level factors significantly influenced both stingless bee richness and abundance. Surrounding forest cover has a strong positive direct effect on both factors, while agricultural and urbanized cover generally reduced both bee abundance and diversity. In the local habitat, there is a significant interaction between orchard size and floral richness with stingless bee richness. We also found that pollinator specialization in pollination networks decreased when the distance to the forest patch increased. Both local and landscape factors thus influenced meliponine assemblages, particularly the forest patches surrounding an orchard, which potentially act as a key reservoir for stingless bees and other pollinator taxa. Preservation of forest patches can protect the permanent nesting and foraging habitat of various pollinator taxa, resulting in high visitation for crop and wild plants. Full article

Stingless bees are a type of honey producers that commonly live in tropical countries. Their use for honey is being abandoned due to its limited production. However, the recent improvements in stingless bee honey production, particularly in South East Asia, have brought stingless bee products back into the picture. Although there are many stingless bee species that produce a wide spread of products, known since old eras in traditional medicine, the modern medical community is still missing more investigational studies on stingless bee products. Whereas comprehensive studies in the current era attest to the biological and medicinal properties of honeybee (Apis mellifera) products, the properties of stingless bee products are less known. This review highlights for the first time the medicinal benefits of stingless bee products (honey, propolis, pollen and cerumen), recent investigations and promising future directions. This review emphasizes the potential antioxidant properties of these products that in turn play a vital role in preventing and treating diseases associated with oxidative stress, microbial infections and inflammatory disorders. Summarizing all these data and insights in one manuscript may increase the commercial value of stingless bee products as a food ingredient. This review will also highlight the utility of stingless bee products in the context of medicinal and therapeutic properties, some of which are yet to be discovered. Full article

Beekeeping with stingless bee provides new opportunities to improve the incomes of many households in Malaysia through the sale of honey and other bee products. While Heterotrigona itama is one of the most commonly cultured species of stingless bees, its behavior is not very well understood. Hence, we conducted this study to investigate the behavior of H. itama in exploiting food sources by ascertaining the nectar sugar concentration preferred by the bee. We also aimed to determine the preferred distance of food source from the beehive. Our results suggest that H. itama prefers high sugar concentrations of 35% and above, and most of the bees preferred to forage close to their hive to collect food. We discuss how nectar concentration, food distance, and abiotic factors influence the number of bees exploiting food sources and the overall foraging pattern of H. itama. Full article