Home Americas Americas: Honey is a new approach to fighting antibiotic resistance, say researchers

Americas: Honey is a new approach to fighting antibiotic resistance, say researchers

Honey could be a solution to the serious, ever-growing problem of bacterial resistance to antibiotics, said researchers.

Medical professionals sometimes use honey successfully as a topical dressing, but it could play a larger role in fighting infections, the researchers predicted.

Their study was part of the 247th National Meeting of the American Chemical Society from March 16 to 20, 2014.

Properties of honey

“The unique property of honey lies in its ability to fight infection on multiple levels, making it more difficult for bacteria to develop resistance,” said study leader Susan M. Meschwitz, Ph.D. from Salve Regina University in Newport, R.I.

It uses a combination of hydrogen peroxide, acidity, osmotic effect, high sugar concentration and polyphenols — all of which actively kill bacterial cells, she explained.

The osmotic effect, which is the result of the high sugar concentration in honey, draws water from the bacterial cells, dehydrating and killing them.

Fighting bacteria

In addition, several studies have shown that honey inhibits the formation of biofilms, or communities of slimy disease-causing bacteria, she said.

“Honey may also disrupt quorum sensing, which weakens bacterial virulence, rendering the bacteria more susceptible to conventional antibiotics.”

Quorum sensing is the way bacteria communicate with one another, and may be involved in the formation of biofilms.

In certain bacteria, this communication system also controls the release of toxins, which affects the bacteria’s pathogenicity, or their ability to cause disease.

Meschwitz said unlike conventional antibiotics, honey does not target the essential growth processes of bacteria.

The problem with this type of targeting, which is the basis of conventional antibiotics, is that it results in the bacteria building up resistance to the drugs.

Antioxidants advantage

Honey is effective because it is filled with healthful polyphenols, or antioxidants, she said.

These include the phenolic acids, caffeic acid, p-coumaric acid and ellagic acid, as well as many flavonoids.

“Several studies have demonstrated a correlation between the non-peroxide antimicrobial and antioxidant activities of honey and the presence of honey phenolics.”

A large number of laboratory and limited clinical studies have confirmed the broad-spectrum antibacterial, antifungal and antiviral properties of honey, according to Meschwitz.

She said that her team also is finding that honey has antioxidant properties and is an effective antibacterial.

“We have run standard antioxidant tests on honey to measure the level of antioxidant activity.”

“We have separated and identified the various antioxidant polyphenol compounds. In our antibacterial studies, we have been testing honey’s activity against E. coli, Staphylococcus aureus and Pseudomonas aeruginosa, among others.”

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