Honey from sugarbag bees found to have antimicrobial properties

A sweet solution to antibiotic resistance* could be found in the buzzing bodies of Australia’s stingless bees, new research has found.

A study led by Dr Kenya Fernandes, an Australian Research Council DECRA Fellow in the School of Life and Environmental Sciences at the University of Sydney, has demonstrated the remarkable antimicrobial* properties of honey produced by three species of native Australian stingless bees: Tetragonula carbonaria, Tetragonula hockingsi, and Austroplebeia australis.

Commonly referred to as “sugarbag bees”, the honey from these species has historically been used as a food source. It is also a traditional remedy for health problems like itchy skin and sores among Indigenous communities in Australia.

The new research shows stingless bee honey has antimicrobial properties that fight infection even after heat treatment and long-term storage. These distinctive features set it apart from honey from honeybees, highlighting its potential as a sustainable, natural agent for fighting drug-resistant infections.

The study has been published in Applied and Environmental Microbiology*, published by the American Society for Microbiology.

With the growing resistance to antibiotic drugs posing a critical global health challenge, Dr Fernandes said honey from our native bees could become valuable in the fight against infection.

“Given the growing medical challenge of antimicrobial resistance, our findings suggest stingless bee honey could complement, or provide a valuable alternative to, synthetic antibiotics*,” she said.

Earlier studies have highlighted that microbes generally do not develop resistance to honey, unlike conventional antibiotics.

But unlike honey from the European honeybee (Apis mellifera), which often relies on hydrogen peroxide* for its antimicrobial effects, the honey from Australian stingless bees has high levels of both hydrogen peroxide and non-peroxide activity – making it strong and versatile as a potential health treatment.

The research found when hydrogen peroxide was removed the honey displayed antimicrobial activity, suggesting this was intrinsic* to the honey itself.

Dr Fernandes compared the honey from native stingless bees to Manuka honey*, which is commonly used for healing wounds.

“Manuka honey from honeybees displays strong non-peroxide antimicrobial activity, which is one reason why its production has been a commercial success,” she said.

“However, that is largely reliant on the source of its nectar from specific myrtle plants (Leptospermum).”

In comparison, the honey from native stingless bees has healing benefits no matter what plants the bees have taken nectar from, which “ suggests there is something special about these bees, rather than just nectar, that plays a critical role here,” she said.

Co-author Professor Dee Carter said the ability for the honey to fight infection was consistent across all of the samples taken. This consistency was different to honeybee honey, which varied depending on where the bees got their nectar from and the time of year they made honey.

The researchers hope this consistency could make it easier to produce commercial honey.

However, one of the big challenges would be making enough. Each stingless beehive produces about half a litre of honey a year, which would make it difficult to create a large crop.

One advantage for beekeepers is that the hives are usually easier to maintain than honeybee hives.

Co-author Dr Ros Gloag said: “While the yield* is small, these hives require less maintenance than traditional beehives, allowing beekeepers to manage larger numbers.”

Native stingless bee honey last year gained approval from Food Standards Australia New Zealand.

The research team aims to explore non-peroxide activity further.

Dr Fernandes said: “While we have yet to test the honeys against drug-resistant bacteria specifically, the presence of multiple antimicrobial factors significantly reduces the likelihood of resistance developing.”

POLL

GLOSSARY

• antibiotic resistance: when bacteria adapt and grow stronger so that they aren’t affected by antibiotics anymore. This can become a problem across the world because of our overuse and misuse of antibiotics, making certain infections difficult to treat
• antimicrobial: something that kills or slows the spread of microorganisms like bacteria, viruses and fungi
• Microbiology: the scientific study of microorganisms
• synthetic antibiotics: antibiotics made by humans in a laboratory
• hydrogen peroxide: a chemical compound that has antiseptic, cleaning properties
• intrinsic: central to its nature
• Manuka honey: a honey made by European honey bees from the nectar of the Manuka tree, which is native to New Zealand and also grows in some coastal parts of Australia
• yield: the amount of honey made by the bees

EXTRA READING
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How do bees make honey?
Scientist names new native bee after pet dog

QUICK QUIZ
1. What type of bees could help to combat antibiotic resistance?
2. How does the honey from this bee compare to Manuka honey?
3. What happens to the antimicrobial properties of the honey when hydrogen peroxide is removed?
4. What is one challenge of producing the honey commercially?
5. What health problems have First Nations people traditionally used the honey to treat?

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CLASSROOM ACTIVITIES
1. Packaging the product
Draw a life-size design for a stingless bee honey product that could be sold in pharmacies. Consider the following in your design:

– the size of the product

– making application of the product easy

– colours and designs that will be appealing

– including factual information

Write a paragraph that explains the choices you made in your design.

Time: allow 30 minutes to complete this activity
Curriculum Links: English; Science; Design and Technologies; Visual Arts

2. Extension
Write a 30 second speech to convince a person who is fearful of bees that they are actually wonderful.

Time: allow 15 minutes to complete this activity
Curriculum Links: English; Science

VCOP ACTIVITY
BAB it!
Show you have read and understood the article by writing three sentences using the connectives “because’’, “and”, and “but” (BAB). Your sentences can share different facts or opinions, or the same ones but written about in different ways.