Honey is the oldest natural sweetener and has been known for its medicinal uses since ancient times. A large number of in vitro and limited clinical studies have confirmed the broad-spectrum antimicrobial (antibacterial, antifungal, and antiviral) properties of honey, which are mainly attributed to a combination of hydrogen peroxide, acidity, osmotic effect, high sugar concentration, and antioxidants. However, the precise mode of antibacterial action is only just beginning to be understood. Several studies have demonstrated a correlation between the non-peroxide antimicrobial and antioxidant activities of honey and the presence of honey phenolics. Although the specific polyphenols found in honey vary with nectar source and region, the most common phenolics found in honey include the phenolic acids caffeic acid, p-coumaric acid, and ellagic acid and the flavonoids quercetin, apigenin, galangin, pinocembrin, kaempferol, luteolin, and chrysin. The antimicrobial properties of honey might only represent one facet of its anti-infective potential and may involve other mechanisms. Recently, the effect of honey on the inhibition and prevention of bacterial biofilm formation and the interruption of bacterial cell-cell communication systems has been investigated but the constituents responsible for this effect have not been determined. In order to understand the unusual ability that honey has to fight infections, we have investigated additional constituents of honey that may provide alternative modes of antibacterial action.

Bioactive constituents in honey: Antimicrobial and antibiofilm effects

247th National Meeting (2014)

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