IUNS 21st International Congress of Nutrition

M. SOLEDAD GARCÍA PAOLONI; FEDERICO D. VALLESE; VALERIA SPRINGER; ANA ANDRADA

Ciudad de Buenos Aires

Congreso; IUNS 21st International Congress of Nutrition; 2017

Background and objectives: Honey bees (Apis melliferaL.) collects pollen from flowers as pollen loads to get proteins forsustaining the colony. Due to its protein content (macronutrient)bee pollen is consumed as a nutritional supplement. Additionallythe presence of bioactive compounds like polyphenols (micronutrients)provides biological function reason why this bee productis considered a natural functional food. Bee pollen compositiondepends strongly on the botanical and geographical origin (eventhough post-harvested processing). The aim of this study is tocharacterize bee pollen collected in the Buenos Aires Valley ofColorado River (BAVCR) zone.Methods: During the beekeeping season 2013-2014, twelvesamples were harvested to quantify total proteins and totalpolyphenols and to evaluate the botanical origin. Total proteincontent was estimated by Kjeldahl method with a conversion factorof 6.25 as the Argentine Food Code indicates (Chapter X, art.785) and the mean value obtained was 22% ± 2%. Total polyphenolswas determinate by the reference method of Folin-Ciocalteuand the average content was 13.1 ± 3.3 mg gallic acid/g pollen.Results: The values obtained are comparable to those reportedin the literature. The botanical origin was established by acetolysismethod (Erdtman-1960) and subsequently the pollen grains wereidentified and counted using light microscope. Main representedtaxa in the samples were Brassicaceae, Lotus and Eucalyptus.Conclusions: Both protein and polyphenols obtained valuesallow us to conclude that bee pollen collected in the BAVCR canbe considered an excellent dietary supplement as well as a naturalfunctional food. The vegetation availability of mentioned botanicaltaxa will enable beekeepers of this geographical area to obtainvery good quality bee pollen.Keywords: Functional food, Dietary supplement, Total protein,Polyphenols, Botanical origin.