This document provides an introduction to melissopalynology, which is the study of botanical and geographic origins of honey through microscopic pollen analysis. It discusses honey and nectar formation by bees, the types of honey, honey bees species, bee pasturage plants, chemical and physical properties of honey. It also covers deterioration of honey through fermentation or heating, potential heavy metal contamination, adulteration risks, and other bee products beyond honey like bee venom, bee bread, royal jelly, propolis, beeswax, mead, bee pollen. The document emphasizes the importance of bees as Albert Einstein is quoted saying that without bees, humans would only have four years left to live.

1. Introduction
To
Melissopalynology
Presented by:
Priyanka Uniyal
Pre-Ph.D. Botany

2. CONTENTS
Introduction to Melissopalynology
Honey and Nectar
Honey formation
Types of Honey
Honey Bees
Bee pasturage
Chemical characteristics of Honey
Colour of Honey
Aroma and Flavour
Granulation of Honey
Physical characteristics of Honey
Deterioration of Honey
Heavy metal contamination
Adulteration
Bee Products

3. Introduction to Melissopalynology
Also k/as Mellisso-, Mellitto-, or Melittopalynology
Latin, ‘melifer’ – honey
‘melissa’, ‘melitta’ - a bee (Panton’s Botanical Dictionary, 1868)
Studies the botanical and geographic origin of honey by
subjecting honey sediments to microscopic analysis for pollen
grains contained therein
Also other structural elements (spores and fungal hyphae, algae,
plant hairs, insect bristles, silica, clay and earth, starch and wax)

4. Honey
“Honey is the natural sweet substance produced by the honey bees from
the nectar of blossoms or from the secretion of living parts of plants or
excretion of plant sucking insects on the parts of plants, which
honeybees collect, transform and combine with specific substances of
their own, store and leave in the honey comb to ripen and mature.”
(Codex Alimentarius, 1988)
Nectar
Sugary liquid produced in
nectarines situated at the base of
petals in flowers, or in extra-floral
nectarines borne on petioles,
spines, or in other parts of the
plant

5. Honey Formation
Foraging worker bees visit flowers and collects nectar (in their
honey stomachs) and pollen (in pollen baskets on their legs)
These bees return to hive and pass the nectar onto the other
worker bees (house bees)
House bees chew the nectar for about half an hour, breaking
complex sugars into simple sugars enzymatically
They place small droplets of chewed nectar on the upper side
of cells and fan the wings to remove excess moisture
Honey is formed and stored by sealing the cells

6. Types of Honey
Botanically, honey is of two types:
• Unifloral honey – derived from a particular plant (Citrus honey)
• Multifloral honey – derived from more than one plant species
(Sunderban honey)
Commercially , honey is graded into 7 types:
1. Raw honey – extracted without heating
2. Strained honey – passes through mesh; pollen remains
3. Filtered honey – pollen also removed
4. Organic honey – produced, processed and packaged according to State &
Federal regulations
5. Blended honey – homogenous mixture of 2 or more honeys with different
floral and geographical origin, colour, flavour or density
6. Crystallized honey – granulated honey
7. Whipped honey – processed by controlled crystallization for smooth
consistency

7. •Apis mellifera (Europe) - tetraploid
•A. cerana (SE Asia) - tetraploid
•A. dorsata (SE Asia) - diploid
•A. florae (SE Asia) - diploid
Apis mellifera
Apis dorsata Apis florae Apis cerana

10. Bee pasturage
The plants that yield nectar and pollen is collectively
called bee pasturage, or bee forage.
AcaciaBorage
Dandelion
Morning Glory
Red cloverLitchi

11. Chemical characteristics of honey
Sugars – 1. Dextrose (glucose) and laevulose (fructose), 70%
2. Disaccharides, 8-10%
3. Trisaccharides and higher sugars, 1.5%
Enzymes – 1. Invertase (sucrase or saccharase), converts sucrose into glucose
and fructose
2. Diastase, breaks down starch
3. Glucose oxidase, oxidizes glucose to gluconic acid and hydrogen
peroxide
Proteins and amino acids – 40-65% of total nitrogen in honey
•11-21 free amino acids (Proline predominates)
Minerals – 0.02-1%, 11 mineral elements and 17 trace elements (Schuette & Remy, 1932)
Acids – less than 0.5%, Gluconic acid being the major one
Hydroxymethylfurfural (HMF) – produced from breakdown of hexose sugars by an acid
•increases with increasing temperature, decreasing the quality
Vitamins – thiamine, riboflavin, nicotinic acid, pyridoxine, pantothenic acid, ascorbic acid
Moisture content - 13-25%

13. Colour of Honey
•Water-white – rape, sage, Acacia, red clover
•Pearl white – Ipomoea or morning glory
•Light golden – viper’s bugloss, Echium
•Deep golden yellow – golden rod, Solidago, Dalbergia
•Intense golden yellow – dandelion
•Grayish-yellow – borage
•Greenish – lime
•Greenish brown – tree of heaven, Ailanthus altissima, maple
•Dark or reddish brown – ling heather
•Dark brown – tamarisk
Measured by Pfund colour grader
Reliable indicator of honey quality

14. Aroma and flavour
•Aroma – alcohols, ketones & aldehydes,
acids and their esters
•Flavour – sugars, amino acids, tannins,
glucoside, alkaloidal compounds, other acids
•Aroma and flavour are at their best when
honey is taken from the hive

15. Granulation of honey
Granulating tendency of honey is determined through
the ratio between the monosaccharide content and the
water content of honey
Honey with more glucose content and less water content
granulates more
Besides sugar, the course of granulation depends largely
on the presence/absence of minute suspended particles,
like air bubbles, bee wax, dust particles, pollen grains etc.

16. Physical Characteristics of honey
•Viscosity – highly viscous
•Density – expressed as specific gravity; more the water
content, lesser the specific gravity
•Hygroscopicity – strong hygroscopic character
•Surface tension – low surface tension
•Thermal properties – specific heat of honey varies from 0.56 –
0.73 cal/g/OC; relative low heat conductivity

17. Deterioration of honey
Fermentation
- action of sugar-tolerant yeast upon glucose and fructose,
forming ethanol and CO2
- ethanol, in the presence of O2, forms acetic acid and water
giving sour taste
- the water content of honey must be less than 17.1%
- fermented honey can sometimes be reclaimed by heating it
to 150oC for a short time
Heating and storage
- darkening, loss of fresh flavour, and formation of off-flavour
(aromatization)
- storage reduces enzyme content, largely invertase and
diastase, and produce HMF (Hydroxymethylfurfural)

18. Heavy metal contamination
Contamination of honey by heavy metals, pesticides,
fungicides, insecticides, radioactivity, etc.
Pesticides/insecticides contain mainly copper, zinc,
cadmium and mercury
Adulteration
•Honey can be adulterated with low
cost sugars from maize or corn to
increase yield and profits.
•High Fructose Corn Syrup (HFCS)
is one of the most common
adulterants

19. Bee Products
1. Honey – primary food of honeybees; have many health benefits, medicinal
value, food, energy provider
2. Bee Venom – medicinal uses (used in arthritis, for pain relief)
3. Bee Bread – fed to all the bees except for queenbee; comprised of all essential
amino acids, high vitamin content (esp. Vit. K), enzymes and flavanoids;
medicinal uses
4. Royal jelly – fed only to the queenbee; high content of Vitamin B5 and B6 and
amino acids; promotes tissue growth, muscle and cell regeneration
5. Propolis – used to seal small gaps in beehive (fix comb, lacquer the alveoli,
protects from cold winds, and fungus and bacteria); medicinal uses
6. Bee Wax – used in construction of hive; used in food items and medicines
7. Mead – Honey wine, high level of antioxidants
8. Bee Pollen – fed upon by young bees; low in calories but rich in proteins, amino
acids, vitamins, minerals, enzymes, beneficial fatty acids and bioflavanoids;
anti-bacterial, antifungal and antiviral properties that strengthen capillaries,
reduce inflammation, stimulate immune system and lower cholestrol level

20. Sweet Buzz
“If the bees disappear from the surface of the
Earth, man would have no more than four
years to live.”
-Albert Einstein
Thank You