Background: Bee venom is a promising agent for cancer treatment due to its selective cytotoxic potential for cancer cells through apoptotic pathways. However, there is no evidence for changes in the epigenome and mitochondrial DNA copy numbers after bee venom application. The purpose of this study was to determine the impact of bee venom on cytosine modifications and mitochondrial DNA copy number variation. Methods: A broad range of methods was applied to elucidate the impact of bee venom on neoplastic cells. These included MTT assay for detection of cytotoxicity, immunostaining of cytosine modifications and mitochondria, assessment of cellular morphology by flow cytometry, and quantification of mitochondrial DNA copy numbers using QPCR. Results: Bee venom-induced cell death was selective for cancer cells, where it triggered a response characterized by alteration of cytosine modification. In contrast, normal cells were more resistant to DNA modifications. Furthermore, application of the venom resulted in variation of mitochondrial membrane permeability and mitochondrial DNA copy numbers, together with alterations in cell morphology, manifesting as reduced affected cell size. Conclusion: The study findings suggest that bee venom can be used as a selective DNA (de)methylating agent in cancer. Various agents (such as decitabine and 5-azacytidine) have been synthesized and developed for cancer treatment, and a range of syntheses and preparation and application methods have been described for these patented drugs. However, to the best of our knowledge, no previous research has investigated the use of bee venom or any component thereof for epigenetic therapy in cancer cells.

Mad honey or rhododendron honey containing grayanotoxins possesses antioxidant and anti-inflammatory properties. This study was planned to evaluate the effects of topical application of mad honey on wound healing in diabetic rats. Dorsal skin wounds were created under anesthesia in male Wistar albino rats with streptozotocin-induced diabetes mellitus randomly divided into three groups (each n = 28). Group I received topical 0.09% saline solution, Group II received terramycin, and Group III received mad honey. Wound tissues were collected after decapitation on days 3, 7, 14, or 19 post-wounding. Levels of malondialdehyde (MDA), and activities of the antioxidant enzymes superoxide dismutase, glutathione peroxidase, and catalase were determined using quantitative methods. Gene expressions of the inflammatory markers such as tumor necrosis factor alpha (TNF-α) and metalloproteinase 9 (MMP-9) and of the anti-inflammatory marker interleukin-10 (IL-10) were analyzed using real-time reverse transcription polymerase chain reaction. Wound tissues were also subjected to histopathological examination. Significantly lower MDA levels and TNF-α and MMP-9 expression, and increased antioxidant enzyme activities and IL-10 expression were observed in the mad honey group (Group III) compared with Group I. These parameters exhibited similar changes in Group II compared with Group I. In conclusion, the topical use of mad honey improves the healing of diabetic wounds in examined rats.

Azerbaijan is an important region for the beekeeping and honey industry. Biochemical characteristics of eleven honey samples from different regions of Azerbaijan were analyzed through measuring electrical conductivity, optical activity, moisture content, proline and diastase number. Phenolic components are analyzed by reverse-phase high-performance liquid chromatography (RP-HPLC) with UV–Vis double beam detector. Sugars profiles of samples were carried out using HPLC with a refractive index detector (RID). Total phenolic content (TPC), ferric reducing antioxidant power (FRAP) and 2,2-diphenyl-1-picryhydrazyl (DPPH) free radical scavenging activity were measured with the aim of gathering information on the antioxidant power of samples. Biochemical and antioxidant characteristics are also supported with melissopalynological data. Conductivity ranged between 0.32 and 0.82 mS cm⁻¹, moisture 14.52 and 20.78%, proline 314.34 and 1077.21 mg kg⁻¹, diastase 13.05 and 22.19. Azerbaijan honeys exhibited levorotatory properties. Total phenolic content varied from 18.82 to 154.75 mg gallic acid equivalent per 100 g honey. The results confirm that physico-chemical and biologically active properties of Azerbaijan honeys are affected by the flora and geographical variations.

Bee venom from honey bees (Apis Mellifera L.) is known to have many pharmacological and biological properties. Melittin, a peptide consisting of 26 amino acids, is known as the main component of bee venom. The study aims to develop a rapid capillary electrophoresis method for separating and quantifying melittin in honeybee venom. Since melittin is a basic peptide, it will adhere to the capillary wall during separation. Two different methods were developed in this study for the capillary electrophoretic separation of melittin. As a first approach, a low pH buffer system was used. For the second approach, the capillary column was coated with a positively charged polymer (PEI). With both methods developed, the migration of melittin in the capillary was achieved by preventing wall adsorption. Melittin migrated in 6 min when the low-pH buffer system was applied, whereas its migration time is longer than 10 min in the PEI-coated capillary column. Thus, a low-pH buffer system was preferred for the analysis of the actual bee-venom sample. 100 mmol L-1 phosphoric acid/sodium dihydrogen phosphate system at pH 1.55 was chosen as separation buffer. As a conclusion, a fast and reliable method was developed for the determination of melittin in honeybee venom. The method was applied to an Anatolian bee venom sample to highlight the melittin amount. The melittin amount was found as 24.5 ± 3.4 g 100 g-1 in the bee venom sample.

Propolis is a natural bee product used as a therapeutic agent for centuries. Propolis extracts are natural resources that attract the attention of scientists looking for new components due to the insufficiency of existing drugs. In current study, antiviral and antimicrobial activity of propolis water extracts prepared from three different raw propolis samples collected from Northeast of Türkiye (Ardahan, Rize, and Trabzon) were investigated. The total flavonoid contents (TFC) and total phenolic content (TPC) of the extracts were measured. It was determined that TPC and TFC ranged from 5.87±0.36 to 20.47±1.46 mg GAE g-1, and 0.48±0.04 to 2.10±0.22 mg QUE g-1, respectively. The antimicrobial activity of the extracts against 14 microorganisms (Bacillus cereus ATCC14579, Staphylococcus aureus ATCC 25923, Enterococcus faecalis ATCC 29212, Bacillus subtilis ATCC 6633, Pseudomonas aeruginosa ATCC 27853, Acinetobacter haemolyticus ATCC 19002, Escherichia coli ATCC 25922, Salmonella typhimurium ATCC 14028, Enterobacter aerogenes ATCC 13048, Mycobacterium smegmatis ATCC 607, Klebsiella pneumoniae ATCC 13883, Chromobacterium violaceum ATCC 12472, Candida parapsilosis ATCC 22019, and Candida albicans ATCC 10231) and their effect against the Pseudomonas aeruginosa biofilm were investigated. Additionally, anti-quorum sensing and anti-swarming activities of the extracts were tested. The antiviral activity of the extracts was examined against Herpes simplex virus type 1 (HSV-1) by MTT and qRT-PCR methods. The water extracts of propolis samples did not show antimicrobial, anti-swarming, anti-quorum sensing, and anti-viral activities. However, extracts were found to have strong anti-biofilm activities. The results show that aquatic propolis extracts can be evaluated in the treatment of biofilms.