Apitherapy Gains Popularity in Oman

Oman Observer, 12/28/2014

Have you ever wondered how many products the honeybee provides and what wonderful benefits they hold out for humans? Honey is just one of the many products the honeybees produce. Dr Hassan Talib al Lawati, who was the first in the Sultanate to do research on bee products, says all bee products including honey, pollen, royal jelly (also called bee saliva, spit or milk), propolis, venom, beeswax, beehive smell (as nebuliser), bee larvae and even bee sound are used as medicine. Honey, pollen, propolis, and royal jelly are in maximum use.

honeybee_genehansonAfter studying apitherapy (bee therapy) in Germany, Russia and Portugal, he opened a Bee Products Healing Centre in 2009. Five years of success of this clinic show that bee products have great healing powers and apitherapy, which involves the use of bee products as medicine, has been growing in popularity in Oman.

He uses all bee products in the form of cream, soaps, syrups and bee sting for healing a host of conditions related to muscle, nerve, skin, hair falling, cough, throat, eye infection, flue, and sinuses. Honeybee products are also used for multiple sclerosis, arthritis, wounds, pain, gout, shingles, burns, tendonitis, and infections.

Located in Al Khuwair at Al Amal Medical and Health Centre (7th floor), the Bee Products Healing Centre provides a perfect platform to see apitherapy in action and all bee products which are used for various healing purposes. It is also a chance to speak to others who may have already benefited from this therapy…

Propolis May Help Treat Dermatitis

Suppression of skin inflammation in keratinocytes and acute/chronic disease models by caffeic acid phenethyl ester
Archives of Dermatological Research
December 2014

Skin inflammation plays a central role in the pathophysiology and symptoms of diverse chronic skin diseases including atopic dermatitis (AD). In this study, we examined if caffeic acid phenethyl ester (CAPE), a skin-permeable bioactive compound from propolis, was protective against skin inflammation using in vitro cell system and in vivo animal disease models. CAPE suppressed TNF-α-induced NF-κB activation and expression of inflammatory cytokines in human keratinocytes (HaCaT).

The potency and efficacy of CAPE were superior to those of a non-phenethyl derivative, caffeic acid. Consistently, topical treatment of CAPE (0.5 %) attenuated 12-O-tetradecanoylphorbol-13-acetate(TPA)-induced skin inflammation on mouse ear as CAPE reduced ear swelling and histologic inflammation scores. CAPE suppressed increased expression of pro-inflammatory molecules such as TNF-α, cyclooxygenase-2 and inducible NO synthase in TPA-stimulated skin. TPA-induced phosphorylation of IκB and ERK was blocked by CAPE suggesting that protective effects of CAPE on skin inflammation is attributed to inhibition of NF-κB activation. Most importantly, in an oxazolone-induced chronic dermatitis model, topical application of CAPE (0.5 and 1 %) was effective in alleviating AD-like symptoms such as increases of trans-epidermal water loss, skin thickening and serum IgE as well as histologic inflammation assessment.

Collectively, our results propose CAPE as a promising candidate for a novel topical drug for skin inflammatory diseases.

Malaysian Tualang Honey Reduces Ovarian Toxicity

Potential protective effect of Tualang honey on BPA-induced ovarian toxicity in prepubertal rat

BMC Complementary and Alternative Medicine 2014, 14:509 

Background

To investigate the potential protective effects of Tualang honey against the toxicity effects induced by Bisphenol A (BPA) on pubertal development of ovaries.

Methods

This study was conducted on pre-pubertal female Sprague Dawley rats. Animals were divided into four groups (n = 8 in each group). Group I was administered with vehicle 0.2 ml of corn oil (Sigma-Aldrich, USA) using oral gavage daily for six weeks; these animals served as negative control (CO group), Group II was administered with BPA suspended in corn oil at 10 mg/kg body weight and served as positive control (PC group), Group III was administered with 200 mg/kg body weight of Tualang honey 30 min before the administration of BPA at 10 mg/kg (TH group) while Group IV was administered with 200 mg/kg body weight of Tualang honey 30 min before the administration of corn oil (THC group). Body weight of all animals were monitored weekly.

Results

The BPA-exposed animals exhibited disruption of their estrus cycle, while those animals treated with BPA together with Tualang honey, exhibited an improvement in percentage of normal estrous cycle. Their ovaries had lower numbers of atretic follicles compared to the PC group but higher than the CO group.

Conclusions

Tualang honey has a potential role in reducing BPA-induced ovarian toxicity by reducing the morphological abnormalities of the ovarian follicles and improving the normal estrous cycle.

Have you heard about the bee venom facial?

TNN | Dec 26, 2014

Bee venom facials are slowly catching up as a beauty treatment around the world. Used by Catherine Middleton and a number of Hollywood stars, this trend is known to make the skin dewy and fresh.

How does it work?

Bee venom facials and face masks act as cleansing, tightening, softening and nourishing agents for the skin. Hollywood celebrities like Victoria Beckham and Gywenth Paltrow are known to swear by this quirky beauty treatment. Besides making the skin glow, this facial also helps as an anti-aging formula...

Royal Jelly Effective in Reducing Mucositis Induced by Chemoradiotherapy

The effect of topical application of royal jelly on chemoradiotherapy-induced mucositis in head and neck cancer: a preliminary study

Int J Otolaryngol. 2014;2014:974967

Purpose. One of the common side effects experienced by head and neck cancer patients on chemoradiotherapy is mucositis. Severe mucositis may be controllable by limiting cancer therapy, but it has resulted in decreasing the completion rate of chemoradiotherapy. The efficacy of royal jelly (RJ) as prophylaxis against chemoradiotherapy-induced mucositis was evaluated through clinical scoring of oral and pharyngeal mucositis.

Methods. In this randomized, single-blind (physician-blind), clinical trial, 13 patients with head and neck cancer requiring chemoradiation were randomly assigned to two groups. Seven patients assigned to the study group received RJ, and 6 patients were assigned to the control group. RJ group patients took RJ three times per day during treatment. The patients in both groups were evaluated twice a week for the development of mucositis using Common Terminology Criteria for Adverse Events version 3.0.

Results. A significant reduction in mucositis was seen among RJ-treated patients compared with controls (P < 0.001).

Conclusion. This study demonstrated that prophylactic use of RJ was effective in reducing mucositis induced by chemoradiotherapy in head and neck cancer patients. However, further studies are needed because of the small sample size and the absence of double blinding.

Aged and Fresh Propolis Have Similar Qualitative Composition

A Comparison between Characterization and Biological Properties of Brazilian Fresh and Aged Propolis

Biomed Res Int. 2014;2014:257617

Objective. As propolis is a highly valued bee product, we aimed to verify the quality of aged propolis, investigating their phenolic and flavonoid composition, levels of toxic metals, radical scavenging and antimicrobial activities. Material and Methods. Samples of fresh and aged propolis of six different beekeepers, from the same geographical location, were investigated in terms of their phenolic and flavonoid composition and levels of Pb, Cd, and Cr, as well as radical scavenging and antimicrobial activities. Results. The two groups of propolis had similar qualitative composition by HPLC-PDA and ESI(-)-MS. Fresh propolis and aged propolis show no differences when average values of extraction yield, flavonoids, EC50, or MIC were compared and both types of propolis showed good antimicrobial activity at low concentrations. Only levels of phenolic compounds were higher in fresh propolis.

Conclusion. The propolis samples considered in this study, aged or fresh, had similar qualitative composition, although they were collected in different periods. Samples only differed in their levels of total phenolic content. Moreover, aged propolis conserves significant radical scavenging and antimicrobial properties. We suggest that aged propolis should not be discarded but explored for alternative applications.

Bangladeshi Sundarban Honey Helps Protect Liver and Kidneys

Protective Effect of Sundarban Honey against Acetaminophen-Induced Acute Hepatonephrotoxicity in Rats

Evid Based Complement Alternat Med. 2014;2014:143782

Honey, a supersaturated natural product of honey bees, contains complex compounds with antioxidant properties and therefore has a wide a range of applications in both traditional and modern medicine.

In the present study, the protective effects of Sundarban honey from Bangladesh against acetaminophen- (APAP-) induced hepatotoxicity and nephrotoxicity in experimental rats were investigated. Adult male Wistar rats were pretreated with honey (5 g/kg) for 4 weeks, followed by the induction of hepatotoxicity and nephrotoxicity via the oral administration of a single dose of APAP (2 g/kg). Organ damage was confirmed by measuring the elevation of serum alkaline phosphatase (ALP), alanine transaminase (ALT), aspartate transaminase (AST), total protein (TP), total bilirubin (TB), urea, creatinine, and malondialdehyde (MDA). Histopathological alterations observed in the livers and the kidneys further confirmed oxidative damage to these tissues.

Animals pretreated with Sundarban honey showed significantly markedly reduced levels of all of the investigated parameters. In addition, Sundarban honey ameliorated the altered hepatic and renal morphology in APAP-treated rats. Overall, our findings indicate that Sundarban honey protects against APAP-induced acute hepatic and renal damage, which could be attributed to the honey's antioxidant properties.

Propolis Component Has Antidepressant Effect

Novel Antidepressant-Like Activity of Caffeic Acid Phenethyl Ester is Mediated by Enhanced Glucocorticoid Receptor Function in the Hippocampus

Evid Based Complement Alternat Med. 2014; 2014: 646039

Caffeic acid phenethyl ester (CAPE) is an active component of propolis that has a variety of potential pharmacological effects. Although we previously demonstrated that propolis has antidepressant-like activity, the effect of CAPE on this activity remains unknown. The present study assessed whether treatment with CAPE (5, 10, and 20 µmol/kg for 21 days) has an antidepressant-like effect in mice subjected to chronic unpredictable stress via tail suspension (TST) and forced swim (FST) tests.

CAPE administration induced behaviors consistent with an antidepressant effect, evidenced by decreased immobility in the TST and FST independent of any effect on serum corticosterone secretion. Western blots, conducted subsequent to behavioral assessment, revealed that CAPE significantly decreased glucocorticoid receptor phosphorylation at S234 (pGR(S234)), resulting in an increased pGR(S220/S234) ratio. We also observed negative correlations between pGR(S220)/(S234) and p38 mitogen-activated protein kinase (p38MAPK) phosphorylation, which was decreased by CAPE treatment. These findings suggest that CAPE treatment exerts an antidepressant-like effect via downregulation of p38MAPK phosphorylation, thereby contributing to enhanced GR function.

Black Seed (Nigella Sativa) Honey Shows Anti-HIV Activity

Anti-HIV-1 Activity of Eight Monofloral Iranian Honey Types

PLoS One. 2014; 9(10): e108195

Monofloral Iranian honeys from eight floral sources were analyzed to determine their anti-HIV-1 activities as well as their effects on lymphocyte proliferation. The Peripheral Blood Mononuclear Cells (PBMCs) used in this study were prepared from five healthy volunteers who were seronegative for HIV, HCV, HBV and TB.

The anti-HIV-1 activity of eight different honeys was performed by quantitative polymerase chain reaction (PCR) assay and high pure viral nucleic acid kit. The results demonstrated that monofloral honeys from Petro selinum sativum, Nigella sativa, Citrus sinensis, Zataria multiflora, Citrus aurantium and Zizyphus mauritiana flowers had potent anti-HIV-1 activity with half maximal effective concentration (EC50) values of 37.5, 88, 70, 88, 105 and 5 µg/ml respectively. However, monofloral Iranian honeys from Astragalus gummifer and Chamaemelum nobile flowers had weak anti-HIV-1 activity. The frequency and intensity of CD4 expression on PBMCs increased in the presence of all honey types. CD19 marker were also increased after the treatment with monofloral honeys from Z.multiflora and N. sativa.

The anti-HIV-1 agent in monofloral honeys from P.sativum, N. sativa, Z. multiflora and Z. mauritiana flowers was detected by spectroscopic analysis as methylglyoxal. Time of drug addition studies demonstrated that the inhibitory effect of methylglyoxal is higher on the late stage of HIV-1 infection. The result demonstrated that methylglyoxal isolated from monofloral honey types is a good candidate for preclinical evaluation of anti-HIV-1 therapies.

Croatian Pet Medications Use Propolis, Bee Pollen

Dogs Treated with Natural Remedies Made from Bees

SWNS, 12/19/2014

Sick dogs are being treated for the first time with medicines made by BEES.

Natural remedies including pollen and honey have been given to humans for thousands of years.

But the benefits of the powerful remedy for man’s best friend had not been fully explored. 

Now a Croatian firm has managed for the first time to make medicines containing honey and pollen from bees that are effective.

Hedera has developed a unique product line for dogs called Apipet. It is an organic treatment based on bee products propolis and pollen.

A spokesman said: ‘Apipet are the only bee products in the world produced on completely natural and holistic principle.

‘The products are the result of years of research on the impact of bee products on health. Uniqueness of Apipet is that every product is made completely without any chemical method (extraction, synthesis, dissolving in alcohol, etc.), any additives (flavours, colors, bulking or anti caking agents.), which are commonly used in production of supplements.’

Apipet line is made of five products intended for special purposes and different body system in dogs: immunity, digestion, skin and hair, cartilage and joints, strength and vitality…

UK Researcher Looks at Using Honey to Treat Wounds in Horses

VET’S DIARY: Wound treatment not such a sweet solution

Northumberland Gazette, 12/19/2014

In the equine department, we have seen an increase in the number of wounds and injuries over the last few weeks, writes Edward Chinn.

Longer nights and less grass in the field results in some horses becoming bored and spending more time standing around the gate waiting for feed time. This can lead to a kick or a leg caught in a gate as they are bustling for the best position.

It was perfect timing to have an evening lecture from an equine specialist updating local vets on the latest in equine wound management.

Patrick Pollock, from Glasgow University, had some fascinating research into the latest dressings available. His department has been conducting research into the types of protein found in equine wounds and how these compare in healthy, healing wounds compared to non-healing wounds. This exciting, ground-breaking research has produced a scientific method to monitor whether a topical treatment or dressing is genuinely aiding wound healing or hindering it.

This is more difficult to monitor than you might imagine as the body will do all it can to heal a wound even in an adverse healing environment. Often wounds would be far better simply flushed with water from a hosepipe or saline solution rather than being hindered by products such as ‘wound powder’ or ‘purple spray’. It would be very interesting to use this new procedure to evaluate the claims of the many ‘miracle cures’ for healing wounds found on an internet search!

Patrick has also been conducting research into the use of honey on wounds.

The use of honey as a topical treatment for wounds has been well publicised but will any honey from the supermarket do? It is quite alarming the range and quantity of bacteria which he cultured from honey obtained from food outlets.

He seriously questions if you would want to put them on your toast, let alone on a wound. So you do need to use sterile medical-grade honey.

Manuka honey is honey made from the nectar of the manuka tree found in New Zealand and Australia.

Manuka honey from supermarkets may only contain a small amount of manuka honey blended with other honeys and is not sterile. It should be noted that pure Scottish heather honey had similar antibacterial properties to manuka honey. The Kiwis always have been very good at marketing!
It is also proposed that honey is considerably more useful in the initial stages of healing and not later on…

Propolis Extract May Help Treat Dengue Fever

The effect of a unique propolis compound (Propoelix™) on clinical outcomes in patients with dengue hemorrhagic fever

Infect Drug Resist. 2014; 7: 323–329.

Published online Dec 9, 2014

Background

Dengue fever is a mosquito-borne virus belonging to the family Flaviviridae. It is an old virus that has re-emerged globally over the past 20 years and now causes a global burden of 50 million infections per year across approximately 100 countries. Despite this, there is no safe vaccine available, and therapy is largely supportive. Its pathogenesis is multifaceted and currently still poorly understood, leading to a lack of disease-specific therapy. Propolis is a natural antiviral and anti-inflammatory product derived from the saps of plants and mixed with the saliva of honeybees. Propoelix™ is a uniquely potent and water-soluble extract of propolis containing high concentrations of anti-inflammatory compounds like caffeic acid phenethyl ester.

Objective

The primary objective is to determine the effectiveness of a unique propolis extract (Propoelix™) on the clinical course of patients with dengue hemorrhagic fever (DHF). The secondary objective is to examine the effect of Propoelix™ on tumor necrosis factor-α (TNF-α) levels in patients with DHF.

Methods

A double-blind, randomized, placebo-controlled trial was conducted at the Department of Internal Medicine, Gatot Soebroto Central Army Hospital in Jakarta, Indonesia, from May 2012 to July 2013. Sixty-three patients who met the inclusion criteria were enrolled in the trial. Patients were randomized to receive either two capsules of Propoelix™ 200 mg three times a day or placebo daily for 7 days. Clinical and laboratory variables of both groups, including the anti-inflammatory marker TNF-α, were investigated. Patients were deemed technically fit for discharge if their platelet counts had recovered and exceeded 100,000/μL but were all observed as inpatients for 7 days.

Results

There were 31 patients in the Propoelix™ treatment group and 32 patients in the placebo group. Platelet counts in the Propoelix™-treated group showed a trend toward a faster recovery by day 3 of admission and became statistically significant by day 6 (101.42±48.79 vs 80.78±43.35 [103/mL], P=0.042) and day 7 (146.67±64.68 vs 107.84±57.22 [103/mL], P=0.006). Patients treated with Propoelix™ had a significantly greater decline in TNF-α levels on day 7 of therapy compared with patients in the placebo group (P=0.018). They also had a significantly shorter length of hospitalization compared with those in the placebo group (4.69±0.78 days vs 5.46±1.16 days, P=0.012).

Conclusion

Propoelix™ appears to hasten the improvement in platelet counts and TNF-α levels and shortens the duration of hospitalization in patients with DHF.

Diabetic 'Health Honey' a Reality Thanks to Nanotechnology and Stevia

By RJ Whitehead, 09-Dec-2014

A new hybridised pollen, developed by a former Nasa scientist, can be fed to bees to create a new species of “designer honey” for use by diabetics.

Bee Venom Boosts Effectiveness of Anti-Cancer Drug

Combined antitumor effects of bee venom and cisplatin on human cervical and laryngeal carcinoma cells and their drug resistant sublines

J Appl Toxicol. 2014 Dec;34(12):1332-41

In the present study, we investigated the possible combined anticancer ability of bee venom (BV) and cisplatin towards two pairs of tumour cell lines: parental cervical carcinoma HeLa cells and their cisplatin-resistant HeLa CK subline,as well as laryngeal carcinoma HEp-2 cells and their cisplatin-resistant CK2 subline.

Additionally, we identified several peptides of BV in the BV sample used in the course of the study and determined the exact concentration of MEL. BV applied alone in concentrations of 30 to 60 μg ml(–1) displayed dose-dependent cytotoxicity against all cell lines tested. Cisplatin-resistant cervical carcinoma cells were more sensitive to BV than their parental cell lines (IC(50) values were 52.50 μg ml(–1) for HeLa vs.47.64 μg ml(–1) for HeLa CK cells), whereas opposite results were obtained for cisplatin-resistant laryngeal carcinoma cells (IC(50) values were 51.98 μg ml(–1) for HEp-2 vs. > 60.00 μg ml(–1) for CK2 cells).

Treatment with BV alone induced a necrotic type of cell death, as shown by characteristic morphological features, fast staining with ethidium-bromide and a lack of cleavage of apoptotic marker poly (ADP-ribose) polymerase (PARP) on Western blot. Combined treatment of BV and cisplatin induced an additive and/or weak synergistic effect towards tested cell lines, suggesting that BV could enhance the killing effect of selected cells when combined with cisplatin. Therefore, a greater anticancer effect could be triggered if BV was used in the course of chemotherapy.

Our results suggest that combined treatment with BV could be useful from the point of minimizing the cisplatin concentration during chemotherapy, consequently reducing and/or postponing the development of cisplatin resistance.

How can bee colony algorithm serve medicine?

World J Plast Surg. 2014 Jul;3(2):87-92

Healthcare professionals usually should make complex decisions with far reaching consequences and associated risks in health care fields. As it was demonstrated in other industries, the ability to drill down into pertinent data to explore knowledge behind the data can greatly facilitate superior, informed decisions to ensue the facts. Nature has always inspired researchers to develop models of solving the problems. Bee colony algorithm (BCA), based on the self-organized behavior of social insects is one of the most popular member of the family of population oriented, nature inspired meta-heuristic swarm intelligence method which has been proved its superiority over some other nature inspired algorithms. The objective of this model was to identify valid novel, potentially useful, and understandable correlations and patterns in existing data. This review employs a thematic analysis of online series of academic papers to outline BCA in medical hive, reducing the response and computational time and optimizing the problems. To illustrate the benefits of this model, the cases of disease diagnose system are presented.