Mint (Mentha spp.) Honey: Analysis of the Phenolic Profile and Antioxidant Activity

Abstract

Research background. The composition of honey is influenced by the botanical source and geographical area of the nectar from which it is derived. Unifloral honeys reach higher market value than multifloral honeys due to their specific aromas, which result from volatile and phenolic compounds. Experimental approach. The aim of our study was to characterize the phenolic composition of a rare unifloral variety of honey - Mentha spp. honey. For this purpose, we obtained standard physico-chemical analyses, pollen analysis, determined total phenolic and flavonoid content, analysed antioxidant activity and performed qualitative and quantitative analysis of phenolic compounds for 5 Menta spp. honeys. Results and conclusions. Our results indicate that Mentha spp. honeys have high phenolic content, ranging from (76.7±0.6) to (90.1±1.1) mg GAE/100 g and (6.7±0.6) to (12.5±0.8) mg QUE/100 g for flavonoid content. These honeys also exhibit strong antioxidant activity ranging from (33.6±2.8) to (51.3±1.2) mg TE/100 g and (14.4±0.8) to (55.1±2.4) mg TE/100 g when analysed using DPPH and ABTS assays, respectively. Quantitative LC-MS/MS analysis revealed that the most abundant phenols in all samples were chrysin, apigenin and p-coumaric acid. Qualitative LC-MS/MS analysis identified the presence of kaempferide, diosmetin, acacetin and several caffeic acid derivatives. Novelty and scientific contribution. Our study indicates that Mentha spp. honeys contain unique phenolic profiles, which likely contribute to their distinctive aroma and strong antioxidant activity. A detailed description of the rare honey varieties gives beekeepers greater visibility and easier access to the demanding natural products market.

Efficiency of Microwave and Ultrasound-Assisted Extraction as a Green Tool for Polyphenolic Isolation from Monofloral Honeys

“…The TPC of the mint honey extracts obtained by MAE ranged from 47.10 to 84.19 mg GAE/100 g and by UAE from 55.85 to 87.86 mg GAE/100 g. According to our knowledge, the results of TPC obtained in MAE and UAE honey extracts are scarce. Our results are in agreement with the study of Chaikham and Prangthip [18], who treated longan flower honey with ultrasound, and with those of Pavlešić et al [19] for mint honey conventionally extracted with water (76.7-90.1 mg GAE/100 g). The TPC of mint honey (23.7 mg GAE/100 g) conventionally extracted with 40% methanol/acidified water (v/v, pH = 2, HCl) [20] was considerably lower than in this study.…”

“…In Polish buckwheat and wild raspberry honeys, pinocembrin content (0.059 and 0.033 mg/100 g) was lower than in this study [46]. According to Pavlešić et al [19], naringenin content in Croatian mint honey ranged from 0.01-0.0314 mg/100 g, which was also lower than in this study. Apigenin, chrysin, and luteolin were identified among the flavones by comparison with authentic standards, while apigenin-7-Oglucoside was identified on the basis of a characteristic fragment ion at m/z 271 and the loss of sugar moiety glucose (−162 amu).…”

“…In Polish buckwheat and wild raspberry honey, chrysin content (0.079 and 0.059 mg/100 g) was also higher than that of apigenin and luteolin but lower than in this study [46]. Lower contents of chrysin (0.112 to 0.51 mg/100 g) and apigenin (0.1065 to 0.64 mg/100 g) were also determined in Croatian mint honeys when compared to this study [19]. Furthermore, mint honey extracts obtained using UAE had higher chrysin (0.508-0.786 mg/100 g) and apigenin (0.207-0.764 mg/100 g) content than the extracts obtained using MAE (0.389-0.635 and 0.207-0.350 mg/100 g, respectively) (Supplementary Table S1).…”

“…In general, quercetin was the predominant flavonoid in Argentine monofloral honeys, and total flavonol content ranged from 0.67 to 1.71 mg/100 g [45] which is consistent with the results of this study. Lower contents of quercetin (from 0.0580 to 0.15 mg/100 g) and myricetin (from 0.0004 to 0.0058 mg/100 g) were determined in different Croatian mint honeys [19]. In Polish buckwheat and wild raspberry honey, quercetin content was 0.057 and 0.010 mg/100 g, respectively, and higher content of galangin (0.070 and 0.054 mg/100 g) and kaempferol (0.035 and 0.099 mg/100 g) were also found [46].…”

“…In this study, raspberry honey extracts obtained using UAE had higher p-coumaric (1.645 mg/100 g) and ferulic acid content (0.748 mg/100 g) than ones obtained using MAE (1.493 and 0.617 mg/100 g), while buckwheat MAE samples had higher p-coumaric (0.481 mg/100 g) and lower ferulic acid content (1.460 mg/100 g), (Supplementary Table S1). Pavlešić et al [19] determined p-coumaric acid in the range of 0.34-0.8 mg/100 g and caffeic acid in the range of 0.13-0.272 mg/100 g in Croatian mint honeys, which was more or less similar to the results for p-coumaric acid (0.254-1.277 mg/100 g) and caffeic acid (0.120-0.250 mg/100 g) of mint extracts in this study, respectively. The total content of hydroxybenzoic acids (HBA) as the sum of vanillic, 2,5-dihydrobenzoic, 3,4-dihydrobenzoic, and p-hydroxybenzoic acids in the analyzed UAE and MAE honey extracts ranged from 0.407-3.831 mg/100 g. The most abundant HBA in analyzed samples were p-hydroxybenzoic acid ranging from 0.018 (lavender honey-UAE) to 3.102 mg/100 g (lavender honey-UAE) and vanillic acid ranging from 0.143 (lavender honey-UAE) to 0.582 mg/100 g (mint honey-MAE).…”