Variations in nutritional profile of honey produced by various species of genus Apis

The medicinal attributes of honey appears to overshadow its importance as a functional food. Consequently, several literatures are rife with ancient uses of honey as complementary and alternative medicine, with relevance to modern day health care, supported by evidence-based clinical data, with little attention given to honey’s nutritional functions. The moisture contents of honey extracted from University of Veterinary and Animal Sciences, Lahore honey bee farm was 12.19% while that of natural source was 9.03 ± 1.63%. Similarly, ash and protein contents of farmed honey recorded were 0.37% and 5.22%, respectively. Whereas ash and protein contents of natural honey were 1.70 ± 1.98% and 6.10 ± 0.79%. Likewise fat, dietary fiber and carbohydrates contents of farmed source documented were 0.14%, 1.99% and 62.26% respectively. Although fat, dietary fiber and carbohydrates contents of honey taken from natural resource were 0.54 ± 0.28%, 2.76 ± 1.07% and 55.32 ± 2.91% respectively. Glucose and fructose contents of honey taken out from honeybee farm were 27% and 34% but natural source were 22.50 ± 2.12% and 28.50 ± 3.54%. Glucose and fructose contents of honey taken out from honeybee farm were 27% and 34% but natural source were 22.50 ± 2.12% and 28.50 ± 3.54%. Similarly, sucrose and maltose contents of farmed honey were 2.5% and 12% while in natural honey were 1.35 ± 0.49% and 8.00 ± 1.41% respectively. The present study indicates that such as moisture, carbohydrates, sucrose and maltose contents were higher farmed honey as compared to the natural honey. In our recommendation natural honey is better than farmed honey.

Medicinal Plants

Medicines of plant origin have been used for treating humans and animals without any adverse effects. New medicinal plants are searched to develop more effective and cheaper drugs in place of synthetics drugs. Plants represent a large natural source of compounds that might serve for the development of novel drugs. Currently medicinal herbs are researched for diuretic properties, and several medicinal herbs are used as diuretics. Currently various synthetic medicines are available for this purpose; however, natural resource medicines are still an important choice because of their higher efficiency and better safety. Further, some herbs are also important sources of antioxidants, which protect the body from the effects of free radicals produced in the body. Antioxidants are required by our body due to increase in the likely exposure of the body to harmful pollutants, radiation, UV lights, etc. These have the ability to delay the oxidation, and plant-derived products are of great interest due to the adverse effect of antibiotics.

Identification of antioxidant components of Gayo Arabica Coffee Cascara using the GC-MS method

Approximately half of the coffee will become by-product in coffee processing. This by-product needs a special focus because of its content can be pollutant for nature. One of the coffee by product that underutilized is cascara, composed by pulp and husk. The major by-product of dry process is husk whereas pulp is the major by-product from wet process. Nowadays, there are various ways to utilize coffee by-product. Previous studies have shown that coffee has a potent antioxidant activity which can be a solution in dermatology problem. This research aims to identify the antioxidant component of coffee arabica husk and pulp of Gayo, Aceh Tengah, Aceh using GC-MS method. One of the compounds that identified in both coffee husk and pulp is caffeine. Caffeine is a potential natural antioxidant and it also has anticellulite effect to skin. The other compounds found in coffee husk and pulp also have benefit in dermatology. We conclude that coffee arabica husk and pulp can be a potential natural source to eradicate dermatologic problem.

Elderberry Stalks as a Source of High-Value Phytochemical: Essential Minerals and Lipophilic Compounds

Elderberry (Sambucus nigra L.) consumption has been growing in the last years, generating a large number of stalks (~10% of the berries bunch) that are still under-valorized. This study focused on the evaluation of elderberry stalks as a source of high-value phytochemicals. In this vein, the essential mineral content and lipophilic composition were analyzed for the first time. In addition, the polar fraction was evaluated regarding its total phenolic content (TPC) and antioxidant activity by both 2,2-azinobis-3-ethylbenzothiazoline-6-sulfonic acid (ABTS) and 2-diphenyl-1-picrylhydrazyl hydrate (DPPH) assays. The lipophilic fraction was mainly composed of triterpenic acids (2902.20 mg kg−1 of dry weight (dw)), fatty acids (711.73 mg kg−1 dw) and sterols (288.56 mg kg−1 dw). Minor amounts of long-chain aliphatic alcohols and other components were also detected. Ursolic acid (2265.83 mg kg−1 dw), hexadecanoic acid (219.85 mg kg−1 dw) and β-sitosterol (202.74 mg kg−1 dw) were the major lipophilic components verified. The results of this study also indicated that elderberry stalks might be used as a natural source of essential minerals, particularly calcium, iron and potassium, which are known to play important roles in various body functions. The analysis of the polar fraction also showed that elderberry stalks present TPC as high as elderberry themselves as well as considerable antioxidant activity (1.04 and 0.37 mmol TE g−1 of extract, against respectively ABTS and DPPH radicals). These results highlight the potential of elderberry stalks as a natural source of high-value phytochemicals that may be explored in several fields.

Phytochemicals: Dietary Sources, Innovative Extraction, and Health Benefits

Plants are the main natural source of numerous phytochemicals, although only a certain amount have been isolated and identified [...]

Review: chemical approaches toward catalytic lignin degradation

Lignin is a potentially high natural source of biological aromatic substances. However, decomposition of the polymer has proven to be quite challenging, as the complex bonds are fairly difficult to break down chemically. This article is intended to provide an overview of various recent methods for the catalytic chemical depolymerization of the biopolymer lignin into chemical products. For this purpose, nickel-, zeolite- and palladium-supported catalysts were examined in detail. In order to achieve this, various experiments of the last years were collected, and the efficiency of the individual catalysts was examined. This included evaluating the reaction conditions under which the catalysts work most efficiently. The influence of co-catalysts and Lewis acidity was also investigated. The results show that it is possible to control the obtained product selectivity very well by the choice of the respective catalysts combined with the proper reaction conditions.

The Use of Bovine Colostrum in Medical Practice and Human Health: Current Evidence and Areas Requiring Further Examination

Colostrum is produced by the mammary gland for the first few days following birth and is a rich natural source of macro- and micro-nutrients, immunoglobulins, and peptides with anti-microbial, immune modulatory and/or growth-factor activity [...]