Pollinic types found in honey samples of Apis mellifera from Picos, State of Piaui

Com o objetivo de determinar os tipos polínicos de méis produzidos por Apis mellifera L., 1758, no município de Picos, Estado do Piauí, foram realizadas análises polínicas de 35 amostras de méis coletadas entre novembro e dezembro de 2001 no Laboratório de Apicultura do Departamento de Entomologia, Fitopatologia e Zoologia Agrícola da Escola Superior de Agricultura Luiz de Queiroz, Universidade de São Paulo. A identificação dos tipos polínicos foi realizada por meio de descrições obtidas em literatura especializada. Os resultados demonstraram que foram encontrados 36 tipos polínicos, distribuídos em 18 famílias botânicas, sendo consideradas como pólen dominante Piptadenia sp. (Mimosaceae), Mimosa caesalpiniiaefolia Benth. (Mimosaceae), M. verrucosa Benth. (Mimosaceae) e Croton urucurana Baill. (Euphorbiaceae).This research deals with the pollinic types of honeys produced by Apis mellifera L., 1758 in the municipality of Picos, State of Piaui were determined in the Laboratory of Apiculture, Department of Entomology, Phytopathology and Agricultural Zoology, College of Agriculture ‘Luiz de Queiroz', University of São Paulo, in Piracicaba, State of São Paulo, pollinic analysis of 36 honey samples collected in November and December of 2001. The identification of e pthollinic made by types was specialized literature. The results showed that 36 types of pollen were found, distributed in 18 botanical families, and the following plant species were considered as dominant Piptadenia sp. (Mimosaceae), Mimosa caesalpiniiaefolia Benth. (Mimosaceae), M. verrucosa Benth. (Mimosaceae) and Croton urucurana Baill. (Euphorbiaceae)

Pollen morphology of Myrtaceae visited by social bees

This study aimed to characterize species of Myrtaceae belonging to genera already identified in the pollen spectrum of beehive products of social bees, describing pollen grains morphology and correlating with taxonomic differences the species reported in the literature. For each plant species, measurements were made with 25 pollen grains in equatorial view and the polar diameter (PD) and equatorial diameter (ED) were measured. The exine thickness was obtained by measuring 10 pollen grains in polar view at the medium height of mesocolpium. The description of pollen morphology showed that pollen grains of the species are triangular amb, 3-colporates, psilate surface, small to medium size and oblate shape with the P/E ratio ranging from 0.52 to 0.72 µm. The morphological description of Myrtaceae species showed similarity between several characteristics common to pollen grains of this species. The description also allowed separation of nine species studied by size and specific morphological characters with the identification key, which can also be used to study the pollen spectrum of hive products

Produção de hidromel utilizando mel de Melipona scutellaris

Atualmente, existe uma crescente procura de bebidas fermentadas por parte dos consu-midores, particularmente de hidromel, produzido empiricamente desde a antiguidade. De acordo com a literatura, este bebida tem excelentes efeitos na digestão e metabolismo e é benéfico para doentes com anemia crónica e doenças do trato gastrointestinal [1].Esta bebida é geralmente produzida utilizando mel de Apis mellifera, no entanto, no Brasil existe também mel de abelhas sem ferrão, como Melipona scutellaris, com características particulares.Este trabalho tem como objetivo avaliar a qualidade do hidromel produzido a partir do mel de Melipona scutellaris, sendo que, numa primeira fase procedeu-se à caracterização físico--química e à avaliação da segurança microbiológica do mel a utilizar na produção de hidromel. Seguidamente, produziram-se dois tipos de hidromel com diferentes teores alcoólicos, sendo o processo monitorizado relativamente a parâmetros enológicos e de crescimento.O hidromel apresentou um teor alcoólico ligeiramente superior aos padrões exigidos pela Legislação Brasileira para Hidromel à base do mel de A. mellifera. A acidez volátil do hidromel seco ultrapassou ligeiramente o estipulado pela legislação, porém, o ácido acético quantificado por HPLC encontrou-se dentro da norma. As atividades antioxidante e antimicrobiana do hidromel doce foram ligeiramente superiores às do hidromel seco. Relativamente à análise sensorial, o hidromel doce foi melhor aceite pelos provadores do que o seco. Tendo em conta o potencial deste produto, é importante criar ou ajustar a legislação vigente de forma a regulamentar a identidade e qualidade do hidromel produzido a partir dos méis de meliponíneos.info:eu-repo/semantics/publishedVersio

Physico-chemical characteristics of honey produced by Apis mellifera in the Picos region, state of Piauí, Brazil

The objectives of this research were to determine physico-chemical characteristics of 1,758 Apis mellifera L. honey samples produced by in the productive pole of Picos, state of Piauí, to understand, based on these characteristics, how they are grouped and to determine the percentage of honey that fit the specifications determined by Brazilian legislation. Thirty-five honey samples were collected directly from beekeepers for determination of total sugars, reducing sugars, apparent sucrose, humidity, diastase activity, hydroxymethylfurfural (HMF), protein, ash, pH, acidity, formol index, electrical conductivity, viscosity and color. Mean values of each one of the analyzed physico-chemical parameters are within the limits established by the current Brazilian legislation, but it was verified for apparent sacarosis, diastase activity and HMF, values different from the established ones. Protein and HMF were the traits that contributed most for group formation

Characterization of Lavandula spp. Honey Using Multivariate Techniques

Traditionally, melissopalynological and physicochemical analyses have been the most used to determine the botanical origin of honey. However, when performed individually, these analyses may provide less unambiguous results, making it difficult to discriminate between mono and multifloral honeys. In this context, with the aim of better characterizing this beehive product, a selection of 112 Lavandula spp. monofloral honey samples from several regions were evaluated by association of multivariate statistical techniques with physicochemical, melissopalynological and phenolic compounds analysis. All honey samples fulfilled the quality standards recommended by international legislation, except regarding sucrose content and diastase activity. The content of sucrose and the percentage of Lavandula spp. pollen have a strong positive association. In fact, it was found that higher amounts of sucrose in honey are related with highest percentage of pollen of Lavandula spp.. The samples were very similar for most of the physicochemical parameters, except for proline, flavonoids and phenols (bioactive factors). Concerning the pollen spectrum, the variation of Lavandula spp. pollen percentage in honey had little contribution to the formation of samples groups. The formation of two groups regarding the physicochemical parameters suggests that the presence of other pollen types in small percentages influences the factor termed as "bioactive", which has been linked to diverse beneficial health effects.info:eu-repo/semantics/publishedVersio

Pollen Spectrum and Trophic Niche Width of Melipona scutellaris Latreille, 1811 (Hymenoptera: Apidae) in Highly Urbanized and Industrialized Sites

The floristic composition of an environment is important to ensure the trophic niche of bee species. Melipona scutellaris Latreille, is a typical stingless bee of Atlantic rainforest sites in northeastern Brazil, a region widely established in meliponaries for honey and pollen production. M. scutellaris is reared (meliponiculture) in rural and urban areas, where the species depends on the availability of different plants for nectar and pollen collection. In this study, we estimated food niche width, equitativity, and similarity between different colonies of M. scutellaris in highly urbanized and industrialized sites of the Metropolitan Region of Salvador, Bahia State, Brazil. We analyzed pollen spectrum of 58 honey samples from six meliponaries, during 12 months. We identified 111 pollen types distributed in 28 plant families. The Fabaceae family showed the highest diversity in pollen types (33.33% of the total) and Mimosa caesalpiniifolia was the most frequent pollen type, found in 100% of the samples. M. scutellaris concentrated its foraging activity on a few trophic resources (H’ = 2.69 and J’ = 0.01) indicating a few melittophilous plant species belonging to the genera Eucalyptus, Mimosa, Protium, Serjania and Tapirira, should be managed on a regional scale to favor meliponiculture with this native bee species

Phytochemical study and antioxidant activity of Dalbergia ecastaphyllum

The chemical profile of Dalbergia ecastaphyllum has been indicated as the botanical origin of Brazilian red propolis, an apicultural product with proven therapeutic properties. However, few studies have investigated this plant species. This study evaluated and compared microbiological quality, chemical composition, and antioxidant activity of stem and leaf samples of D. ecastaphyllum. The samples were collected in February 2015, in the southern region of the state of Bahia, Brazil. We performed the microbiological analyses, determined the contents of fatty acid, total phenol and flavonoid, and identified the chemical profile and antioxidant activit. Escherichia coli, Salmonella spp. and sulfite reducing clostridial spores were not detected in the samples. Acids of the family ω3 were recorded in the stems and ω6 in the leaves. The leaves presented better nutritional quality of the fraction, better antioxidant capacity in the tests by the DPPH method and β-carotene bleaching. There were 49 chemical compounds, of which 38 belonged to the class of flavonoids. The results indicate that stems and leaves of D. ecastaphyllum have biological properties. Leaves particularly are better for functional food formulation and as natural antioxidant.info:eu-repo/semantics/publishedVersio

Production and characterization of mead from the honey of Melipona scutellaris stingless bees

The Institute of Brewing & Distilling Mead is a traditional alcoholic beverage obtained by fermenting must and can offer a solution to honey over-production and a way of valorizing honey of lower quality. The purpose of this study was to produce and characterize mead with different levels of sugars and alcohol obtained from honey from Melipona scutellaris. The honey used for mead preparation was analysed in order to ensure that it met the required quality standards. It was found that the alcoholic content and volatile acidity were outwith the limits established by Brazilian law. Mead legislation is based on the product obtained from Apis mellifera (‘honey bee’) honey and these results indicate the need to re-evaluate the standards established for this product in order to incorporate mead produced from honey from stingless bees of the genus Melipona. Copyright © 2018 The Institute of Brewing & Distilling.We thank the Coordination for the Improvement of Higher Education Personnel (Coordenação de Aperfeiçoamento de Pessoal de Nível Superior) for granting a scholarship of the Institutional Program of Scholarships of Doctorate Sandwich Abroad to Samira Maria Peixoto Cavalcante da Silva, financial support for the project and a scholarship granted to Leticia M. Estevinho. We also thank the National Council for Scientific and Technological Development (Conselho Nacional de Desenvolvimento Científico e Tecnológico) for a research scholarship granted to Carlos Alfredo Lopes de Carvalho. We thank the Polytechnic Institute of Bragança, in particular to the Laboratory of Microbiology, for the development of the work. This work was supported by the strategic programme UID/BIA/04050/2013 (POCI-01-0145-FEDER-007569) funded by national funds through the FCT IP and by the ERDF through the COMPETE2020 – Programa Operacional Competitividade e Internacionalização.info:eu-repo/semantics/publishedVersio

Fluctuating Asymmetry in Melipona scutellaris (L.) 1811 (Hymenoptera: Apidae) Associated to Stress due to Transportation of Colonies

Transportation to long distances and handling of colonies can affect development and survival conditions of bees. Our study investigated the stress intensity of individuals of Melipona scutellaris Latreille, 1811, due to transportation of colonies to long distances, within the natural range of the species. We used 746 bee workers. The right and left forewings were removed and measured using 15 landmarks in vein insertions. Individuals were divided into four groups: (1) workers collected at the origin site, (2) workers emerged at the place of destination in pupal stage during transportation, (3) workers emerged at the destination site in the 3rd instar of larval stage during transportation, and (4) workers collected after three months of colony establishment at the destination site. The Procrustes ANOVA showed significant results as well as the presence of Fluctuating Asymmetry (FA) in all treatments for the shape of wings (P<0.01). However, in the comparison of groups using the One-Way ANOVA, only workers that emerged at the destination site in the 3rd instar of larval stage during transportation (Group 3) significantly differentiated (P<0.05) from the others, with a higher FA index. The larval stage underwent more stress due to colony transportation. Beekeepers should take good care of colonies during transportation in order to minimize damages to workers to prevent quality loss of services and products offered by bees

Chemical composition and biological activities of mono- and heterofloral bee pollen of different geographical origins

Recent research shows variations in pollen chemical constituents and, consequently, in their therapeutic properties. Mono and multifloral bee pollen extracts were investigated for antioxidant and enzyme inhibitory activity properties, phenolic compounds and fatty acid composition. Generally, Eucalyptus spp. and multifloral extracts exhibited potent inhibitory activity against -amylase, acetylcholinesterase, tyrosinase, lipoxygenase, lipase and hyaluronidase. On the other hand, Miconia spp. demonstrated higher antihemolytic activity. Cocos nucifera and Miconia spp. extracts exhibited important antioxidant properties in the different assays (ABTS, DPPH, -carotene/linoleic acid and reducing power). Moreover, these extracts had greater amounts of total phenols and flavonoids in comparison to others. The increase in antioxidant activity (decrease in EC50 values) was accompanied by an increase in the amount of total phenols in the extracts. The pollen extracts contained linoleic acid and -linolenic acid as major fatty acids, followed by palmitic acid, and oleic acid. In this study, differences were observed in both chemical constituents and biological activities of the samples related to the geographical and botanical origin of bee pollen.We thank the Coordination for the Improvement of Higher Education Personnel (Coordenação de Aperfeiçoamento de Pessoal de Nível Superior-CAPES) and National Council for Scientific and Technological Development (Conselho Nacional de Desenvolvimento Científico e Tecnológico-CNPq) for a scholarship granted to Jucilene Silva Araújo (CAPES), for a research scholarship granted to Carlos Alfredo Lopes de Carvalho (CNPq), financial support for the project and scholarship (CAPES) granted to Emerson Dechechi Chambó, Leticia M. Estevinho and Samira Maria Peixoto Cavalcante da Silva. We thank beekeeper Márcio Brazil for the pollen samples. This work was supported by the strategic programmer UID/BIA/04050/2013 (POCI-01-0145-FEDER-007569) funded by national funds through the Fundação para a Ciência e a Tecnologia (FCT), Portugal and by the European Regional Development Fund (ERDF) through the COMPETE2020-Programa Operacional Competitividade e Internacionalização (POCI).info:eu-repo/semantics/publishedVersio