Is Wild Bee (Apis dorsata Fabr.) Bread Pollen Suitable Nutrition Supplement for Human or Honeybee?

By:

Avry Pribadi and Purnomo

Balai Penelitian Teknologi Serat Tanaman Hutan

Jl. Raya Bangkinang-Kuok km. 9/BKN- Riau 28401

ABSTRACT

Problem. The Asiatic giant honeybees (Apis dorsata Fabr.) are abounded with the rainforests of Indonesia. The product of A. dorsata is not only producing commercially honey, but also producing bee bread that wasted when the honey is harvested. Objective. The objectives of this study are (1) indentifying the composition and amino acid of A. dorsata bee bread to be compare to granule bee pollen that usually available at market (2) evaluating the effect of A. dorsata bee bread as pollen supplement at honeybee (A. cerana and A. mellifera) farm at Plantation Forest Industry at Riau. Results. The results showed that composition of A. dorsata bee bread has 19.96% protein, 7.8% lipid, 3.28% fiber, and 5.94% ash.There are 15 amino acids available in A. dorsata bee bread. Seven of 15 amino acids there are included into essential amino acids (treonine, methionine, valine, phenylalanine, leucine, lysine, and isoleucine). While the 8 non-essential amino acids are aspartic acid, glutamic acid, serine, histidine, glycine, threonine, arginine, alanine, and heucine. The giving of A. dorsata bee bread on honeybee colonies (A. cerana and A. mellifera) showed an increase in crude protein of the worker honeybee, brood cells area of honeybee, and honey production.

Key word: Bee bread, Apis dorsata, amino acid, honeybee farm

INTRODUCTION

The Asiatic giant honeybees (Apis dorsata Fabr.) are abounded with the rainforests of Indonesia that became most productive honeybee honey producing species roommates has the percentage of honey production nearly 60% of all honey produced in Indonesia (Dijen RLPS, 2006). The characteristic of the Asiatic giant honeybee hive is a hive with one stroke that hangs in a branch and a twig of a tree. The hives can be a measured stroke until 2×1 meters with 20 kg of honey production per hive. This species only develops in sub-tropical and tropical Asia (around Pakistan to Indonesia) and cannot be found outside of Asia. In Indonesia, it can be found in Sumatra, Kalimantan, Sulawesi, West Nusa Tenggara and East Nusa Tenggara (except Irian) (Starr et al., 1987).

The activity and products from wild bee has many positive values (benefit) to economic, social, and ecological forest aspects. Economic benefits that obtained by wild bee is one of the producer of Non-Timber Forest Products (NTFP) commodities such as honey as the main products, bee bread, and beeswax. These products still interested by many consumers that can show the positive trend and it is indicated by the amount of demand that usually increased. Social benefits that obtained are honeybee farm can be utilized as one of the activities in the framework of community development programs around the woods and forests. Meanwhile, the ecological benefits that obtained honeybee farm is one of the activity that do not damage the forest (Purnomo et al., 2007).

The product of A. dorsata is not only producing commercially honey, but also producing bee bread. Bee bread is a fermented mixture of bee saliva, plant pollen, and nectar that it used by worker bees as food for the larvae and to produce royal jelly to feed the queen. This bee bread is always wasted if the honey is harvested by farmer. This happened because of the location of the pollen strokes is available at under of honey strokes and when the honey strokes is butted, automatically the bee bread strokes will be cut first before brushing of honey derived for extortion (Purnomo, et al., 2008). Another product that wasted in the process while harvesting honey is beeswax. Most of the wild bee honey farmer at Riau is usually left the swarm (most of consist of wax) after extortion and it can become a place for wild bee pests, for example is wax moths.

Bee bread that wasted when the honey is harvested, reached 10 tons per month and since today there has not been used optimally. Even though, this bee bread can give added value (revenue contribution) to wild bee honey farmers. This is possible to happen because there is a lot of information about bee bread mainly about composition and nutritional content that suitable for human supplement especially for the vegetarian. Anonim (2013) stated that pollen as the one of high vegetable protein source can be a source of protein for the vegetarian community.

Pollen is not only having a good substance for the human health, but also affecting to the levels of development and productivity of honeybee farm. Recent study of Apis cerana that farmed on Acacia mangium and Acacia crassicarpa plantations showed that pollen scarcity would make the honeybee colony collapsed. Honey productivity parameters showed that the highest average production of honey is found in the introduction of treatment with introducing of pollen-producing plants, such as Sorghum spp., increasing about an average of 77.37% per 30 days). Whereas in the treatment without Sorghum spp. showed the increasing only 41.25% per 30 days (Purnomo, et al., 2011). In A. cerana, lack of pollen source would not only make the population decline, but also can be up to the emigration colony to leave the nest (absconding) (Woyke, 1976). The percentage of emigration of A. cerana due to the lack of the pollen source can reach 50% (Wongsiri and Tangkanasing, 1987).

Because of the potency A. dorsata bee bread as human and honeybee supplement, the objective of this study are (1) indentifying the composition and amino acid of A. dorsata bee bread to be compare to granule bee pollen that usually available at market (2) evaluating the effect of A. dorsata bee bread as pollen supplement at honeybee (A. cerana and A. mellifera) farm at Plantation Forest Industry at Riau.

Nutrition fact of dorsata bee bread compare to granule bee pollen.

Laboratory analysis of A. dorsata bee bread showed that percentage of protein reached 13.82% (wet weight) and 19.96% (dry weight). While lipid compounds showed a value of 7.80% (dry weight). Mean while the components of fiber showed a value of 5.94% (dry weight) or an increase of 44.52% in wet weight. In the ash component showed the value of the dry weight reach 3.38%. Some of these values indicated that some of the content of organic compounds that contained in A. dorsata bee bread is in the range of several reference values obtained (Table 1). Moreover, according to Campos et al. (2008) suggested that the carbohydrate content in the A. mellifera bee bread reach 13% to 55%.

Table 1. Detailed composition of A. dorsata bee bread (dried)

Main components	Content (% of dry weight)		Reference
Main components	Test Result	Range Result (min-max)	Reference
Proteins	19.96	10 – 40	Herbert and Shimanuki, 1978; Solberg and Remedios, 1980; Bell et al., 1983; Talpay, 1984; Serra- Bonvehi et al., 1986; Szczesna et al., 1995b; Szczesna and Rybak-Chmielewska 1998; Almeida-Muradian et al, 2005 in Compos et. al. (2008)
Lipids	7.80	1 – 13	Stanley and Linskens, 1974; Herbert and Shimanuki, 1978; Solberg and Remedios, 1980; Bell et al., 1983; Talpay, 1984; Serra- Bonvehi et al., 1986; Szczesna et al., 1995b;Szczesna and Rybak-Chmielewska 1998; Almeida-Muradian et al, 2005 in Compos et. al. (2008)
Fibre	3.28	0.3 – 20	Bell et al., 1983 in Compos et. al. (2008)
Ash	5.94	2 – 6	Stanley and Linskens, 1974; Bell et al., 1983; Talpay, 1984; Serra-Bonvehi et al., 1986; Szczesna et al., 1995b; Szczesna and Rybak- Chmielewska 1998; Almeida-Muradian et al, 2005 in Compos et. al. (2008)

The difference of amino acid between A. dorsata bee bread to granule bee pollen that is A. dorsata bee bread has 7 amino acid from 8 types of essential amino acids that specified by Noel et. al., (2011). The 7 essential amino acid are treonine, methionine, valine, phenylalanine, leucine, lysine, and isoleucine. While Enviro Bee (2013) stated the granular bee pollen only have 5 types of essential amino acids, i.e methionine, phenylalanine, leucine, lysine, and isoleucine (Table 2).

Table 2. Amino acid composition of A. dorsata bee bread compare to granule bee pollen using HPLC technique analysis.

Type of Amino Acid	*A. dorsata* bee bread (% w/w)	Granule bee pollen (%) Enviro bee (2013)
Aspartic acid	1.37
Glutamic acid	1.87	2.1
Serine	0.75
Histidine	0.39	1.5
Glycine	0.64
Threonine	0.67
Arginine	0.80	4.7
Alanine	0.91
Treonine	0.43
Methionine	0.33	1.7
Valine	0.78
Phenylalanine	0.78	3.5
Heucine	0.69
Leucine	0.99	5.6
Lysine Trytophane	0.97	5.7 1.6
Isoleucine Cystine Thresonine Valine	0.88	0.7 0.6 4.6 6.0

When mixed with honey, pollen may be stored in comb cells where it undergoes a lactic acid fermentation process in order to produce the material called bee bread. Because of fermented by lactid bacteria, this A. dorsata bee bread contains high levels of vitamin E and K). Bee pollen is superior to both honey and royal jelly, and possesses a similar (but more stable) composition to that of royal jelly. The overall stability of bee pollen is more advantageous when used in dietetics, as well as an effective form of skin care during corrective dermatology. Faraq et al. (1978) state that since pollen contains fatty acids, this may account for its favorable effect upon the skin and dermal tissues. The anti-fungal action in human perspiration is due to the presence of certain fatty acids such as caprylic, propionic and undecyclenic acids.

The other difference is the way to form it. A. dorsata bee bread is formed by worker bee by used raw material such as pollen (as the main material) and honey which added by worker bee saliva. Because of that, there are many advantage microorganism that following the fermentation process, such as bacteria from Lactobacillus genus. Vasques et al. (2009) stated that there is 13 genus of Lactobacillus that has a role to catabolism the starch, protein, sugar, and celulosa by secretion the glucose oxidation enzyme. Another advantage microorganism are Penicilllium and yeast that catabolism the starch by synthesis the amylase enzyme. During the packing, the pollen is mixed with honey, enzymes, and fungi and bacteria organisms that transform the pollen into bee bread. The resulting material is higher in nutrition than the untreated pollen. Bee pollen is the primary source of protein for the honeybee colony.

Recently a large flora of lactic acid bacteria (LAB) was identified in the honey stomach of the honey bee Apis mellifera. In this study, the presence of this flora in bee pollen and bee bread was investigated. Pollen was collected from the legs of honey bees, and both two week old and two month old bee bread were also obtained for the study (Anderson et al., 2011). The majority of the honey stomach LAB flora was recovered in a viable state from both the pollen and the two week old bee bread, but not from the two month old bee bread. It is demonstrated for the first time that bee bread is probably fermented by the honey stomach LAB flora that has been added to the pollen via regurgitated nectar from the honey stomach. This discovery helps to explain how honey bees standardize the production of bee bread and how it is stored. The presence of the honey stomach LAB and its antimicrobial substances in bee bread also suggests a possible role in the defence against honey bee diseases since the bee bread is consumed by both the larvae and the adult bees.

Then it can be presumed that A. dorsata bee bread has a higher nutritional value than bee pollen that sold in the market. This is due to bee pollen that sold at the market derived from pollen traps which is installed at the entrance of stup (honeybee box). The honeybee that carrying pollen on his legs will be trapped its pollen at the pollen trap. So, the pollen is not fermentated by the microorganism/microflora that appears at honeybee abdomen and it has same nutrient with the pollen that available on the ordinary flower. This is analog with the formation of honey, pollen from the pollen trap is the same as that derived from the nectar of flowers and has not yet be processed by worker bees.

Effect of A. dorsata bee bread supplements as pollen source at honeybee farm at Plantation Forest Industry(PFI) in Riau.

III.1 Crude protein of honeybees worker.

Based on a preliminary study of the bees forage at PFI that planted with A. crassicarpa showed that there is a potential volume of extra floral nectar secretion of A. crassicarpa. It calculated to 42.774 cc / day / hectare for ages 12 months and 73.766 cc / day / hectare to 50 months of age (Purnomo et. al., 2009).The abundance of A. crassicarpa nectar are not equal with the abundance of pollen source. Purnomo et. al. (2010) stated that the pollen source that available in PFI of A. crassicarpa is only a shrub plants (Ageratum conyzoides and Mimosa pudica) and A. crassicarpa itself will flower in 4 years old. The other reason is before A. crassicarpa up to the age of 4 years, it has done logging due to the high demand for wood.

Tabel 3. Analysist of A. cerana worker crude protein

Treatment	*Crude proteina A. cerana* worker (%)**
Treatment	June	July	August
Frame of A. dorsata bee bread	43.4	49.00*	55.10*
Non-A. dorsata bee bread	47.00	37.60	33.40