Melissopalynological, physicochemical and antioxidant properties of honey from West Coast of Malaysia

Stingless bees are native to tropical region and produce honey which are high in moisture content. Compared to honey from honeybees, there are limited studies on honey derived from stingless bees. Hence, the aim of this study was to evaluate the chemical composition and antioxidant activities of stingless bee honey. Fifteen types of honey were collected from six states in West Coast of Malaysia and pollen analyses were carried out. Four types of unifloral honey samples produced by stingless bees were selected to determine their physicochemical and antioxidant activities including total phenolic, total flavonoid and ascorbic acid contents. Melissopalynological study of 15 honey samples collected from different states showed presence of both unifloral and multifloral origins. Honey samples collected from Apis mellifera (honeybee) combs had lower number of total pollen compared to samples collected from Heterotrigona itama and Geniotrigona thoracica (stingless bees). Jambul Merak honey contains the highest phenolic and flavonoid contents with greatest color intensity and has the highest antioxidant potential. This study highlights the chemical composition and biological activity of honey from stingless bees which may increase its commercial value or to be utilised as potential functional food ingredient

Etude des caractéristiques botaniques, agronomiques et de la biologie florale du melon africain (Cucumis melo var. L. agrestis Naudin, Cucurbitaceae)

Study of botanic, agronomic characters and fl oral biology of African melon (Cucumis melo L. var. agrestis Naudin, Cucurbitaceae). African melon, Cucumis melo var. agrestis, is a cultivated crop for which dried seeds are used in preparation of sauce pistachio, a valuable food in Côte dʼIvoire. Few studies are concerned with this crop as compared to melon species cultivated in temperate countries. Agronomic and morphological characteristics of C. melo var. agrestis are studied based on eight characters: germination rate, emergence time, date of fl owering, duration of life cycle, weight of mature berries, mean number of seeds per berry, weight of 100 seeds and seeds shape. Floral biology and mating system are studied on the basis of 19 parameters. Results of these studies showed that C. melo var. agrestis has a life cycle duration of 110 to 150 days varying with seasons. The mean number of berries per plant is variable (5 to 15) and the percentage of seeds per berry is low (6,83%). African melon is andromonoecious with a phenological interval between male and hermaphrodite fl owers occurrence. The pollen grains of hermaphrodite fl owers are viable and the stigmata are mature before fl owers are opening. The implications of fl oral biology on the mating system are discussed in view of yield breeding and study of gene fl ow among individuals on fields

L'Auto-vélo : automobilisme, cyclisme, athlétisme, yachting, aérostation, escrime, hippisme / dir. Henri Desgranges

27 septembre 19431943/09/27 (A44,N15536)