In this study, we aimed to determine the therapeutic value of local Yığılca honeys by examining their physicochemical characteristics, phenolic content, radical scavenging activity, and antimicrobial properties by underlining some overlooked parameters. Honey samples ware divided into two main groups as CH and FH based on melissopalynologycal analysis. Antimicrobial activity of collected honey samples were investigated on important hospital-acquired infections bacteria strains; MRSA (Methicillin-resistant Staphylococcus aureus), MSSA (Methicillin-sensitive Staphylococcus aureus), Escherichia coli, and Acinetobacter baumannii. Although CH’s antimicrobial activities were found slightly higher than the FH’s, there isn’t statistically significant differences between two type honeys. However, the antioxidant activity of CH was found significantly higher than FH. Surprisingly, a higher amount of isomaltose was determined in addition to the total phenolic content in CH compared to FH. There has been found positive correlation between isomaltose amount and zone diameters for MRSA and A. baumannii. We would like to draw attention to isomaltose for its health benefit structure since these parameters may be influence honey’s therapeutic value. We recommend that isomaltose and invertase enzyme should be included in to the honey codex standards suitably depending on the monofloral and multifloral honey’s specific structure, to sensitively standardize and control their quality and therapeutic value. Our data revealed a positive correlation between antioxidant and antimicrobial activity and total phenolic content and higher isomaltose amount.

Honeybee venom (HBV) is an important product of beehives, and its benefits for health have been rediscovered by modern medicine. Since HBV has the potential to treat some diseases, its quality and production conditions require a detailed investigation. The objective of this study is to understand how season, harvesting time (day or night), harvesting site of beehives (inside or entrance) and geographic location affects quality through the analysis of apamin, melittin and phospholipase A 2 (PLA2) content. Each set of six colonies were used to understand the differences in these components when HBV is harvested in the daytime either from the entrance or inside of the hives and nighttime from the inside of the hives. The experiment also investigated seasonal differences as the samples were harvested each month from May to August 2019 in our apiary. Furthermore, the effect of geographic location on quality was examined through the comparison of the data obtained from twenty-seven samples collected by beekeepers using the same device, located in the Turkish cities of Manisa, Muğla, Balıkesir, Düzce and Mersin. The results demonstrated that statistically significant differences in the amounts of analyzed components were not dependent on harvesting time, collection site on the beehives or season. On the other hand, region samples significantly differed in the amounts of all three components, ranging from 1.28% to 3.81% for apamin, 19.51–64.03% for melittin and 7.22%–28.18% for PLA2. However, beekeepers’ improper practices during harvesting and storing might be the most critical parameters that determine the quality of HBV.

In this study, the honey bee diversity existing in Turkey were explained by geometric morphometric methods. For this purpose, the deviations of the junction points in the right wing veins were analyzed with the Draw Wing software program. Generalized Procrustes Analysis and Principal Component Analysis were performed to distinguish the populations according to the deviations in the intersections of the wing vein angles. In the first two canonical planes, honey bee populations were divided into two main groups, Southeastern Anatolia and others. While honey bees in Southeastern Anatolia, which differ in terms of shape morphology, formed a separate group in the UPGMA dendrogram, all the rest grouped closer with each other except Thrace region. This population was not separated from the others in the scatter graph but unseparated in the UPGMA dendrogram. The proximity of the Thracian honey bee population to other groups on the Plot supports that there may be a mixture in this region. Also, the fact that the Southeastern Anatolia population constitutes a separate group in both dendogram and scatter graph showed that there may be a different race in this region.

Bal arısı zehri (BAZ) diğer adı ile apitoksin, bal arısı (Apis mellifera L.)'nın koloni savunmasında kullanmak üzere ürettiği protein ve peptid ağırlıklı bir dış salgı ürünüdür. Apitoksin zengin kimyasal içeriği nedeniyle kozmetik ve sağlık alanında özellikle apiterapide oldukça yaygın kullanıma sahiptir. Apiterapide amaçlanan başarının elde edilmesi kullanılan ürünlerin nitelik ve niceliğiyle doğrudan ilişkilidir. Bu sebeple apiterapi amaçlı kullanım söz konusu olduğunda ham madde üretiminden son ürüne kadarki sürecin kontrollü ve kalite standartlarına uygun yapılması büyük önem taşımaktadır. Türkiye'de bal arısı zehrinin ticari üretimi son günlerde gündeme gelen bir konudur. Bu nedenle gerek zehir üretim miktarı gerekse zehrin içerik bakımından kalitesini etkileyen faktörler konusunda tartışmalar mevcuttur. Bu derlemede bal arısı zehrinin içeriğini ve üretim miktarını etkileyen faktörleri belirlemek için yapılan önceki çalışmalar taranarak bu tartışmalara çözüm önerileri oluşturulması amaçlanmıştır. Çalışmalarda bal arısı zehrinin üretiminde kullanılan cihazların, zehir toplama cihazının kovandaki konumunun, hasat periyodu ve hasat saatinin, mevsimsel değişimin, bal arısı ırkı ve davranışlarının, arı yaşının ve depolama koşullarının zehir miktar ve kalitesi üzerine etkisi ayrıntılı olarak ele alınmıştır. Ayrıca zehir toplamanın koloni performansı ve davranışı üzerine etkisi de araştırılarak detaylı bilgi verilmeye çalışılmıştır.