Free amino acid profiles of honey samples from Vojvodina (Republic of Serbia)

Abstract

Amino acid profile of four honey types - two monofloral (acacia and sunflower), one polyfloral (meadow honey) and forest honey (honeydew honey) collected from the Autonomous Province of Vojvodina (Republic of Serbia) was determined using ion exchange chromatography. The results showed that proline was the dominant amino acid in all analyzed samples. Other amino acids present in substantial amounts were glutamic acid ˃ phenylalanine ˃ glycine ˃ serine in acacia and meadow honey samples, while sunflower was characterized by the presence of higher content of alanine compared to serine. Forest honey samples possessed the highest proline content and also the highest total amino acid content. Based on the amino acid contents, honey samples were classified using chemometric methods (cluster analysis (CA) and principal component analysis (PCA)). CA of different honey types could be applied to group honey types. According to the PCA, honey samples are clearly distinguished and form the specific groups. Therefore, amino acid profile could give an indication of honey botanical origin.

Keywords

• honey
• amino acids
• botanical origin