Xu Yandong, Zheng Xing, Tang Benyan, Yang Xiaorong, Vit Patricia, Popova Milena, Bankova Vassya, Wu Liming, Wang Kai
State Key Laboratory of Resource Insects, Institute of Apicultural Research, Chinese Academy of Agricultural Sciences, Beijing 100093, China.
Lanzhou Institute of Husbandry and Pharmaceutical Sciences, Chinese Academy of Agricultural Sciences, Lanzhou 730050, China.
Food Chem. 2025 Apr 30;472:142967. doi: 10.1016/j.foodchem.2025.142967. Epub 2025 Jan 18.
Stingless bee honey (SBH) has garnered attention as a natural sweetener and functional food, recognized for its exceptional biological activity and distinctive flavour. Compared to honey bee honey, SBH has lower annual production but commands a higher market value, making it more susceptible to adulteration. During an analysis of trehalulose in SBH, we unexpectedly identified the naturally occurring sugar alcohol, mannitol. The presence of mannitol in SBH was confirmed using UHPLC/Q-TOF-MS, H and C NMR analyses. A systemic analysis of 104 SBH samples from various stingless bee species revealed mannitol in all samples, with concentrations ranging from 0.06 g to 13.49 g/100 g. The detection of previously neglected mannitol levels in SBH offers additional evidence supporting its health benefits. This study not only highlights the potential application of SBH in the food industry but also introduces mannitol as a distinctive marker for detecting SBH adulteration.
无刺蜂蜂蜜（SBH）作为一种天然甜味剂和功能性食品已受到关注，因其具有卓越的生物活性和独特风味而闻名。与蜜蜂蜂蜜相比，SBH年产量较低，但市场价值更高，这使其更容易受到掺假的影响。在对SBH中的海藻糖进行分析时，我们意外地发现了天然存在的糖醇——甘露醇。使用超高效液相色谱/四极杆飞行时间质谱（UHPLC/Q-TOF-MS）、氢核磁共振（H NMR）和碳核磁共振（C NMR）分析确认了SBH中甘露醇的存在。对来自不同无刺蜂种类的104个SBH样本进行的系统分析显示，所有样本中均含有甘露醇，其浓度范围为0.06克至13.49克/100克。在SBH中检测到先前被忽视的甘露醇水平，为其健康益处提供了更多证据。这项研究不仅突出了SBH在食品工业中的潜在应用，还引入了甘露醇作为检测SBH掺假的独特标志物。
