Gelam Honey: A Review of Its Antioxidant, Anti-inflammatory, Anticancer and Wound Healing Aspects

Gelam Honey and Its Therapeutic Properties
Vol. 11 No. 2 : 2016 (105-116)

Putri Shuhaili S Putri Shuhaili S
Haszianaliza H Haszianaliza H
Muhammad Fairuz A Muhammad Fairuz A
Zar Chi T Zar Chi T

Abstract
In recent years, there is a growing enthusiasm in honey which has potential health benefits, disease prevention and serves as substitution of modern medicine. Honey is a natural sweet product which is produced by honey bees from floral nectar and has been traditionally used to treat several diseases such as cardiovascular disease, diabetes mellitus, cancer and Alzheimer’s disease since ancient times. Gelam honey (GH) is one of the Malaysian wild monofloral honey which is widely used as traditional medicine by the local population. GH is enriched with several therapeutic properties namely, antioxidative, antiinflammatory, anticancer and accelerated wound healing activities. However, there is lack of literature focusing on the overall effects of GH and its medicinal value. This review paper summarises the phytochemistry characteristics of GH along with its therapeutic values which lead to a broad spectrum idea on several diseases. A concise clarification on the therapeutic properties of GH is expected to provide new knowledge to thescientific society in these modern globalization eras.  

Keywords : anti-inflammatory, anticancer, Antioxidant, gelam honey, wound healing,

Correspondance Address
Zar Chi Thent. Anatomy Unit, Faculty of Medicine, Universiti Teknologi MARA, Jalan Hospital, 47000 Sungai Buloh, Selangor, Malaysia. Tel: 006-03-61267307 Fax: 006-03-61267607 E-mail: zarrchii@gmail.com


References
A-Rahaman, N.L., Chua, L.S., Sarmidi, M.R., Aziz, R. 2013. Physicochemical and radical scavenging activities of honey samples from Malaysia. Agricultural Sciences 4: 46-51. Aljady, A.M., Kamarudin, M.Y., Jamal, A.M., Mohd Yassim, M.Y. 2000. Biochemical study on the efficacy of Malaysian honey on inflicted wounds: an animal model. Medical Journal of Islamic Acedemy of Science 13(3): 125-32. Ames, B.N., Shigenaga, M.K., Hagen, T.M. 1993. Oxidants, antioxidants, and the degenerative diseases of aging. Proc Natl Acad Sci U S A 90(17): 7915-22. Batumalaie, K., Qvist, R., Yusof, K.M., Ismail, I.S., Sekaran, S.D. 2013. The antioxidant effect of the Malaysian Gelam honey on pancreatic hamster cells cultured under hyperglycemic conditions. Clin Exp Med 14(2): 185-95. Betteridge, D.J. 2000. What is oxidative stress?.Metabolism 49(2): 3-8. Bogdanov, S. 1997. Nature and origin of the antibacterial substances in honey. LWT - Food Science and Technology 30(7): 748-53. Bogdanov, S., Jurendic, T., Sieber, R., Gallmann, P. 2008. Honey for nutrition and health. J Am Coll Nutr 27(6): 677-89. Burkill, I.H. 1993. A Dictionary of the economic products of the Malay Pennisula.3rd Printing Publication unit, Ministry of Agriculture, Malaysia, Kuala Lumpur; 1: 1241-2444. Chua, L.S., Rahaman, N.L., Adnan, N.A., Eddie Tan, T.T. 2013. Antioxidant activity of three honey samples in relation with their biochemical components. J Anal Methods Chem 2013: 313798. Chua, L.S., Adnan, N.A., Abdul-Rahaman, N.L., Sarmidi, M.R., 2014. Effect of thermal treatment on the biochemical composition of tropical honey samples. Int Food Res J 21(2): 773-8. Finola, M.S., Lasagno, M.C., Marioli, J.M. 2007. Microbiological and chemical characterization of honeys from central Argentina. Food Chemistry 100(4): 1649-53. Ferreira, I.C., Aires, E., Barreira, J.C., Estevinho, L.M., 2009. Antioxidant activity of Portuguese honey samples: Different contributions of the entire honey and phenolic extract. Food Chemistry 114(4): 1438-43. Ferrero-Miliani, L., Nielsen, O.H., Andersen, P.S., Girardin, S.E. 2006. Chronic inflammation: importance of NOD2 and NALP3 in interleukin-1 generation. Clin Exp Immunol 147(2): 227-35. Hakim, L., Alias, E., Makpol, S., Ngah, W.Z., Morad, N.A., Yusof, Y.A. 2014. Gelam honey and ginger potentiate the anti cancer effect of 5-FU against HCT 116 colorectal cancer cells. Asian Pac J Cancer Prev 15(11): 4651-7. Hussein, S.Z., Mohd Yusoff, K., Makpol, S., Mohd Yusof, Y.A. 2012. Gelam Honey Inhibits the Production of Proinflammatory, Mediators NO,PGE2, TNF-α, and IL-6 in Carrageenan-Induced Acute Paw Edema in Rats. Evid Based Complement Alternat Med 2012: 109636. Hussein, S.Z., Yusoff, K.M., Makpol, S., Yusof, Y.A. 2011. Antioxidant capacities and total phenolic contents increase with gamma irradiation in two types of Malaysian honey. Molecules 16(8): 6378–95. Hussein, S.Z., Mohd Yusoff, K., Makpol, S., Mohd Yusof, Y.A 2013. Gelam honey attenuates carrageenan-induced rat paw inflammation via NF-κB pathway. PLoS One 8(8): e72365. Hussein, S.Z., Yusoff, K.M., Makpol, S., Mohd Yusof, Y.A. 2014. Does gamma irradiation affect physicochemical properties of honey? Clin Ter 165(2): e125-33. Iwalewa, E.O., McGaw, L.J., Naidoo, V., Eloff, J.N. 2007. Inflammation: the foundation of diseases and disorders. A review of phytomedicines of South African origin used to treat pain and inflammatory conditions. African Journal of Biotechnology 6(25): 2868–85. Juszczak, L., Socha, R., Rożnowski, J., Fortuna, T., Nalepka, K., 2009. Physicochemical properties and quality parameters of herbhoneys. Food Chemistry 113(2): 538-42. Kassim, M., Mansor, M., Al-Abd, N., Yusoff, K.M. 2012. Gelam honey has a protective effect against lipopolysaccharide (lps)-induced organ failure. Int J Mol Sci 13(5): 6370-81. Khalil, M.I., Mahaneem, M., Jamalullail, S.M.S., Alam, N., Sulaiman, S.A. 2011. Evaluation of radical scavenging activity and colour intensity of nine Malaysian honeys of different origin. Journal of ApiProduct and ApiMedical Science 3(1): 04–11. Kishore, R.K., Halim, A.S., Syazana, M.S., Sirajudeen, K.N. 2011. Tualang honey has higher phenolic content and greater radical scavenging activity compared with other honey sources. Nutr Res 31(4): 322-5. Koh, H., Chua, T., Tan, C. 2009. A guide to medicinal plants. Singapore: World Scientific Publishing; 95-6. Lim, S.C., Midon, M.S. 2001. Timber of Gelam (Melaleucacajuputi Powell). Kuala Lumpur: Timber Technology Centre, FRIM; 1-5. Makpol, S., Ahmad, T.A.F.T., Jubri, Z., Rejab, N., Yusof, N., Yusof, Y.A.M., 2012. Gelam honey acting as a radioprotectant agent in gamma-irradiated human diploid fibroblasts. J Med Plant Res 6(1): 129-138. Matough, F.A., Budin, S.B., Hamid, Z.A., Alwahaibi, N., Mohamed, J. 2012. The role of oxidative stress and antioxidants in diabetic complications. Sultan Qaboos Univ Med J 12(1): 5-18. Mohd Zohdi, R., Abu Bakar Zakaria, Z., Yusof, N., Mohamed Mustapha, N., Abdullah, M.N. 2012. Gelam (Melaleuca spp.) Honey-Based Hydrogel as Burn Wound Dressing. Evid Based Complement Alternat Med 2012: 843025. Moniruzzaman, M., Khalil, M.I., Sulaiman, S.A., Gan, S.H. 2013a. Physicochemical and antioxidant properties of Malaysian honeys produced by Apis cerana, Apis dorsata and Apis mellifera. BMC Complement Altern Med 13: 43. Moniruzzaman, M., Sulaiman, S.A., Khalil, M.I., Gan, S.H. 2013b. Evaluation of physicochemical and antioxidant properties of sourwood and other Malaysian honeys: A comparison with manuka honey. Chem Cent J 7: 138. Moniruzzaman, M., Chowdhury, M.A., Rahman, M.A., Sulaiman, S.A., Gan, S.H. 2014. Determination of mineral, trace element, and pesticide levels in honey samples originating from different regions of Malaysia compared to manuka honey. Biomed Res Int 2014: 359890. Moylan, J.S., Reid, M. 2007. Oxidative stress, chronic disease, and muscle wasting. Muscle Nerve 35(4): 411-29. Nathan, C. 2002. Points of control in inflammation. Nature 420(6917): 846-52. Ng, F.S.P. (ed). 1978. Tree Flora of Malaya: A Manual for Foresters. Vol. 3. Ministry of Primary Industries, Forest Department, Kuala Lumpur: Longman Malaysia. Sahhugi, Z., Hasenan, S., Jubri, Z. 2014. Protective effects of gelam honey against oxidative damage in young and aged rats. Oxid Med Cell Longev 2014: 673628. Salmah, I., Mahmood, A.A., Sidik, K., 2005. Synergistic effects of alcoholic extract of sweet basil (Ocimum basilicum L.) leaves and honey on cutaneous wound healing in rats. Int J Mol Med Adv Sci 1(3): 220-4. Sani, N.F., Belani, L.K., Sin, C.P., Rahman, S.N., Das, S., Chi, T.Z., Makpol, S., Yusof, Y.A. 2014. Effect of the combination of gelam honey and ginger on oxidative stress and metabolic profile in streptozotocin-induced diabetic sprague-dawley rats. Biomed Res Int 2014: 160695 Silva, T.M.S., dos Santos, F.P., Evangelista-Rodrigues, A., da Silva, E.M.S., da Silva, G.S., de Novais, J.S., dos Santos, F.D.A.R., Camara, C.A., 2013. Phenolic compounds, melissopalynological, physicochemical analysis and antioxidant activity of jandaira (Meliponasubnitida) honey. J Food Compost Anal 29(1): 10-18. Suguna, L., Chandrakasan, G., Thomas Joseph, K. 1992. Influence of honey on collagen metabolism during wound healing in rats. J Clin Biochem Nutr 13: 7-12. Tahir, A.A., Sani, N.F., Murad, N.A., Makpol, S., Ngah, W.Z., Yusof, Y.A. 2015. Combined ginger extract & Gelam honey modulate Ras/ERK and PI3K/AKT pathway genes in colon cancer HT29 cells. Nutr J 14:31. Tan, M.K., Hasan Adli, D.S., Tumiran, M.A., Abdulla, M.A., Yusoff, K.M. 2012. The Efficacy of Gelam Honey Dressing towards Excisional Wound Healing. Evid Based Complement Alternat Med 2012: 805932. The National Honey Board. 2003. Honey-Health and Therapeutic Qualities. The National Honey Board, USA. Vidinsk, B., Gál, P., Toporcer, T., Longauer, F., Lenhardt., Bobrov, N., Sabo, J., 2006. Histological study of the first seven days of skin wound healing in rats. Acta Veterinaria Brno 75(2): 197-202. Wahdan, H.A. 1998. Causes of the antimicrobial activity of honey. Infection 26(1): 26-31. Wen, C.T., Hussein, S.Z., Abdullah, S., Karim, N.A., Makpol, S., Mohd Yusof, Y.A. 2012. Gelam and Nenas honeys inhibit proliferation of HT 29 colon cancer cells by inducing DNA damage and apoptosis while suppressing inflammation. Asian Pac J Cancer Prev 13(4): 1605-1610. Yusof, A.M., Abd Ghafar, N., Kamarudin, T.A., Hui, C.K., Yusof, Y.A. 2016. Gelam honey potentiates ex vivo corneal keratocytes proliferation with desirable phenotype expression. BMC Complement Altern Med 16:76.