Comparação das características físico-químicas e antioxidantes do mel de Tetragonisca angustula (Latreille, 1811) coletado nos estados do Paraná e Rondônia

Abstract

Honey from stingless bees is a product consumed on a large scale in the world and plays an important role in the human diet, used as well in the food, pharmaceutical, and cosmetic industries. Some beneficial health properties are associated with its consumption, usually attributed to its peculiar characteristics, like flavor, aroma and excellent nutraceutical potential. However, the data on its chemical composition and its phenolic profile are insufficient to prove its properties. The objective of this study was to compare samples of honey from Tetragonisca angustula,13 samples of honey in the state of Paraná and 14 samples of honey in the state of Rondônia were collected. In these samples, the physicochemical characteristics and bioactive compounds were compared applying the principal component analysis (PCA) for the physicochemical data. Based on the PCAs obtained, it was possible to distinguish the two groups of honey, the physicochemical data being described by 7 main components with 92.15 % of the total variance of the data. Samples from the state of Rondônia showed the highest values of pH, humidity, proteins, ash, flavonoids, formaldehyde index, phenols and antioxidant activity. While the samples from Paraná presented the highest values of sugars and sucrose.