Phenolic content and in vitro antioxidant capacity of mono-and polyfloral honeys originating from Serbia

Abstract

Honey is a natural product of complex composition, recognized for its numerous health benefits. It is believed that honey is especially valuable for prevention of diseases associated with oxidative stress. Antioxidative properties of honeys are mainly attributed to phenolic compounds. The aim of this paper was to determine total phenolic content (TPC) and antioxidant capacity (IC50) in 19 Serbian honeys originating from five different floral sources - three monofloral (acacia, lime, sunflower) and two polyfloral types (meadow and forest). Analyses were performed spectrophotometrically using Folin-Ciocalteu method for total phenolic content determination and DPPH• test for antioxidative capacity. Polyfloral honeys on average had up to two times higher total phenolic content as well as antioxidant capacity than monofloral. The highest phenolic content and antioxidative capacity were observed in forest (58.35 mg GAE/100 g) and meadow honeys (0.015 g/mL), respectively. Acacia honeys distinguished with the lowest values obtained in both tests (17.36 mg GAE/100 g; 0.067 g/mL). Additionally, significantly high negative correlation coefficient between TPC and IC50 values was noticed in monofloral honeys (p<0.05).

Keywords

• forest honey
• meadow honey
• acacia honey
• lime honey
• sunflower honey
• total phenolic content