Czech J. Food Sci., 2016, 34(3):233-243 | DOI: 10.17221/422/2015-CJFS

Quantification of bee-derived peptide defensin-1 in honey by competitive enzyme-linked immunosorbent assay, a new approach in honey quality controlFood Analysis, Food Quality and Nutrition

Ivana Valachová1, Marcela Bučeková2,3, Juraj Majtán2,3,4
1 Department of Zoology, Faculty of Natural Sciences, Comenius University in Bratislava, Bratislava, Slovak Republic
2 Institute of Zoology and 3Laboratory of Molecular Apidology and Apitherapy, Institute of Molecular Biology, Slovak Academy of Sciences, Bratislava, Slovak Republic
4 Department of Microbiology, Faculty of Medicine, Slovak Medical University, Bratislava, Slovak Republic

We established and evaluated a polyclonal antibody based competitive enzyme-linked immunosorbent assay for the quantification of defensin-1 in honey. The assay showed an inhibitory concentration (IC50) value of 111.5 ± 15.41 ng/ml with a detection limit of 7.8125 ng/ml. The regaining of defensin-1 in spiked 'artificial honey' was between 87.05 and 112.96% with relative standard deviation less than 9.2%. Sensitivity and specificity of the test were experimentally validated on a sample of 20 different honeys. The antibacterial activity of these honey samples showed a significant concentration-dependent correlation with the production of defensin-1 (n = 20; r = -0.6598; P = 0.0016). The assay provides a specific and sensitive method for the screening of defensin-1 in honey. The method to detect honeybee-derived proteins in honey is a promising approach to verifying the authenticity of honey. The defensin-1 ELISA could also be used for the rapid screening of honeys suitable for medicinal purposes.

Keywords: competitive ELISA; honey adulteration; antibacterial peptides; Apis mellifera

Published: June 30, 2016  Show citation

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Valachová I, Bučeková M, Majtán J. Quantification of bee-derived peptide defensin-1 in honey by competitive enzyme-linked immunosorbent assay, a new approach in honey quality control. CAAS Agricultural Journals. 2016;34(3):233-243. doi: 10.17221/422/2015-CJFS.
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