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The stingless bee has been gaining more attention in recent years due to the uniqueness and benefits of its products. Similar to the common honeybee, stingless bees also produce honey, propolis, and pollen, which offer superior benefits for direct or indirect consumption. However, reports on the benefits of stingless bee products are scarce. This article summarises recent reports on stingless bee products. The function and application of the properties of the products such as phenolic compounds, antioxidant properties, and chemical content are elucidated. The antimicrobial properties and anticancer potential of the products are also highlighted. Future trends, potential, and uniqueness of stingless bee products are discussed. Stingless bee honey is highlighted as a superfood that exceptionally has the potential to be an active ingredient in treating cancer. Stingless bee propolis has been extensively studied for its rich beneficial chemical compounds that contribute to its antioxidant properties. Though studies on stingless bee pollen are scarce, it has been reported that it also has the potential of being a functional food.

Compared to honeybees and bumblebees, the effect of diet on the gut microbiome of Neotropical corbiculate bees such as Melipona spp. is largely unknown. These bees have been managed for centuries, but recently an annual disease is affecting M. quadrifasciata , an endangered species kept exclusively by management in Southern Brazil. Here we report the results of a longitudinal metabarcoding study involving the period of M. quadrifasciata colony weakness, designed to monitor the gut microbiota and diet changes preceding an outbreak. We found increasing amounts of bacteria associated to the gut of forager bees 2 months before the first symptoms have been recorded. Simultaneously, forager bees showed decreasing body weight. The accelerated growth of gut-associated bacteria was uneven among taxa, with Bifidobacteriaceae dominating, and Lactobacillaceae decreasing in relative abundance within the bacterial community. Dominant fungi such as Candida and Starmerella also decreased in numbers, and the stingless bee obligate symbiont Zygosaccharomyces showed the lowest relative abundance during the outbreak period. Such changes were associated with pronounced diet shifts, i.e., the rise of Eucalyptus spp. pollen amount in forager bees’ guts. Furthermore, there was a negative correlation between the amount of Eucalyptus pollen in diets and the abundance of some bacterial taxa in the gut-associated microbiota. We conclude that diet and subsequent interactions with the gut microbiome are key environmental components of the annual disease and propose the use of diet supplementation as means to sustain the activity of stingless bee keeping as well as native bee pollination services.

Background Epidemiological and experimental studies have extensively indicated that chronic subclinical systemic inflammation (CSSI) and oxidative stress are risk factors for several chronic diseases, including cancer, arthritis, type 2 diabetes, and cardiovascular and neurodegenerative diseases. This study examined the protective effect of stingless bee honey (SBH) supplementation against lipopolysaccharide (LPS)-induced CSSI, pointing to the possible involvement of NF-κB, p38 MAPK and Nrf2 signaling. Methods CSSI was induced in male Sprague Dawley rats by intraperitoneal injection of LPS three times per week for 28 days, and SBH (4.6 and 9.3 g/kg/day) was supplemented for 30 days. Results LPS-induced rats showed significant leukocytosis, and elevated serum levels of CRP, TNF-α, IL-1β, IL-6, IL-8, MCP-1, malondialdehyde (MDA) and 8-hydroxy-2′-deoxyguanosine (8-OHdG), accompanied with diminished antioxidants. Treatment with SBH significantly ameliorated inflammatory markers, MDA and 8-OHdG, and enhanced antioxidants in LPS-induced rats. In addition, SBH decreased NF-κB p65 and p38 MAPK, and increased Nrf2 expression in the liver, kidney, heart and lung of LPS-induced rats. Furthermore, SBH prevented LPS-induced histological and functional alterations in the liver, kidney, heart and lung of rats. Conclusion SBH has a substantial protective role against LPS-induced CSSI in rats mediated via amelioration of inflammation, oxidative stress and NF-κB, p38 MAPK and Nrf2 signaling.

Purpose Stingless bee products, such as honey and bee bread, are rich sources of beneficial microbes and bioactive compounds. This study aimed to develop a novel multi-strain probiotic formulation by isolating and characterizing lactic acid bacteria (LAB) from stingless bee honey (SBH) and stingless bee bread (SBB), and then enhancing their viability through prebiotic-fortified microencapsulation. Methods A total of 34 LAB isolates were obtained from SBH and SBB collected from five stingless bee species. Among them, three LAB strains - Lactiplantibacillus sp. SBB-HI4 (closest to L. plantarum ATCC 14917 T , 99.7% similarity), Lactiplantibacillus sp. SBB-HI8, (closest to L. pentosus DSM 20314 T , 99.8% similarity), and Lacticaseibacillus sp. SBB-GT4 (closest to L. paracasei JCM 1171 T , 99.8% similarity) - were selected based on their probiotic potential. Their acid and bile salt tolerance, cell surface properties (hydrophobicity, auto-aggregation, and co-aggregation), and antimicrobial activity against common enteropathogens were evaluated. Safety was assessed by hemolytic activity and antibiotic susceptibility. A double-layered alginate-chitosan microencapsulation system supplemented with galacto-oligosaccharides (GOS) was applied to enhance probiotic stability. Results The selected LAB isolates exhibited high acid (pH 3.0) and bile (pH 8.0) tolerance, with survival rates exceeding 80%. Notably, SBB-HI4 showed the highest hydrophobicity (34.03%), auto-aggregation (20.70%), and co-aggregation with E. coli (23.92%) and S. Typhimurium (19.46%). All three strains exhibited broad-spectrum antibacterial activity and passed safety assessments. Encapsulated probiotics demonstrated superior viability, maintaining counts of about 2.6 × 10⁶ CFU/g for four months at 4 °C. The addition of 1.0% (w/v) GOS significantly improved probiotic survival under simulated gastrointestinal conditions. Conclusion Stingless bee-derived LAB, particularly when co-encapsulated with GOS in alginate–chitosan beads, offer promise for applications in the development of stable, functional probiotic supplements aimed at improving gut health across diverse hosts, including bees, animals, and humans.

The use of natural honey (NH) as a nutraceutical agent is associated with nutritional benefits and therapeutic promises. NH is widely accepted as food and medicine by all generations, traditions and civilizations, both ancient and modern. The nutritional profiles, including its use in infant and children feeding reported in different literatures as well as health indices and biomarkers observed by various researchers are illustrated in this manuscript. The review documents folk medicine, experimentation with animal models, and orthodox medical practices shown by clinical trials. This covers virtually all human organs and body systems extensively studied by different workers. The sources and adverse effects of NH contamination, as well as the preventive methods are identified. This could promote the availability of residue free honey and a wholesome natural product for domestic consumption and international market. This could also help to prevent health problems associated with NH poisoning. In addition, apicultural practices and the economic importance of honey are well documented. This report also includes information about a relatively unknown and uncommon South American stingless bee species. We concluded this review by identifying important roles for Ethno-entomologists, other Scientists and Apiculturists in the development of stingless bees to boost honey production, consumption and economic earnings.

Besides the incipient research effort, the role of parasites as drivers of the reduction affecting pollinator populations is mostly unknown. Given the worldwide extension of the beekeeping practice and the diversity of pathogens affecting Apis mellifera populations, honey bee colonies are a certain source of parasite dispersion to other species. Here, we communicate the detection of the microsporidium Nosema ceranae, a relatively new parasite of honey bees, in stingless bees (Meliponini) and the social wasp Polybia scutellaris (Vespidae) samples from Argentina and Brazil by means of duplex PCR. Beyond the geographic location of the nests, N. ceranae was detected in seven from the eight Meliponini species analyzed, while Nosema apis, another common parasite of A. mellifera, was absent in all samples tested. Further research is necessary to determine if the presence of the parasite is also associated with established infection in host tissues. The obtained information enriches the current knowledge about pathologies that can infect or, at least, be vectored by native wild pollinators from South America.

Stingless bee honey (SBH) is an astounding ‘miracle liquid’ with countless medicinal properties for various diseases such as gastroenteritis, cataracts, as well as for wound-healing. However, knowledge regarding it is still rather scarce. Henceforth, it is intriguing for us to contemplate on the less-studied stingless bee and its honey in particular. First and foremost, the antimicrobial ability of honey from eight different stingless bee species was tested to further proven its health benefit. Homotrigona fimbriata honey showed the highest antimicrobial activity with inhibition against five bacteria; Serratia marcescens, Escherichia coli, Bacillus subtilis, Alcaligenes faecalis and Staphylococcus aureus. The next aim of our study is to characterize their honey bacterial community via the use of 16S rRNA amplicon sequencing technology. A total of eight bacterial phyla, 71 families, 155 genera and 70 species were identified from our study and two of the stingless bee species honey were determined to have the highest bacterial diversity compared to other six stingless bee species, namely Heterotrigona erythrogastra and Tetrigona melanoleuca. Furthermost, Lactobacillus malefermentans was thought to be the native dominant bacteria of SBH due to its predominant presence throughout all studied species. The aforementioned SBH’s antimicrobial results and characterization study of its bacterial diversity are hoped to carve the pathway towards extending its probiotic ability into our everyday lives.

The characterization of honey from native bees provides insights into its complex chemical composition, which is rich in bioactive compounds with potential therapeutic properties. This study evaluated the physicochemical characteristics of honey from Melipona quadrifasciata over12 months, as well as identified, through UHPLC-ESI–MS/MS, the presence of bioactive compounds and how these variations are influenced by seasonal and environmental conditions. Results demonstrated the presence of phenolic acids, terpenes, and flavonoids throughout the year, were identified naringenin, kaempferol, sakuranetin, and pinocembrin. Compounds like kaempferol were present only during the warmer months, while afzelin and jaceosidin were identified in all months, with only variations in their relative percentage observed in the samples. The physicochemical analyses showed stable values for Brix and moisture, with moderate variations in total acidity and low concentrations of 5-HMF. These findings underscore the importance of seasonality and environmental conditions in determining the composition and properties of stingless bee honey, emphasizing its potential as a distinctive product.

The Mayan bee Melipona beecheii is one of the most important and widely cultivated stingless bees in Mexico. In order to document pollen and nectar resources for M. beecheii during the dry season, 25 pot-pollen and 25 pot-honey samples were collected from February to May 2021 at eight villages in Yucatan, Mexico. All samples were acetolysed, and 500 pollen grains were counted randomly for each sample. A total of 21 taxa belonging to eight botanical families were observed in the pot-pollen samples; in contrast, 32 pollen types from 16 botanical families were recorded in the pot-honey samples. According to PCA analyses, the pollen types that explained the maximum variance among the pot-pollen samples were Senna racemosa var. racemosa , Lonchocarpus punctatum , Cochlospermum vitifolium , Bursera schlechtendalii and B. simaruba , while S. racemosa var. racemosa ,  C. vitifolium , Alternanthera ramosissima , Psidium guajava , B. schlechtendalii , B. simaruba , L. punctatum,   Mimosa bahamensis and Solanum americanum  explained the greatest variance among the pot-honey samples. Our results confirm that M. beecheii displays polylectic foraging and targets for the secondary vegetation of tropical deciduous and tropical semideciduous forests. Diversity in the pot-pollen was found to be lower than that of the pot-honey samples. Since some pot-honey samples were overrepresented by the pollen grains of S. racemosa var. racemosa , PCA and cluster analysis grouped those pot-pollen and pot-honey samples together.

Stingless bees are key pollinators of both wild plants and crops in tropical Asia and are exploited for honey production and pollination services. Despite their importance, little is known about their habitat preferences in anthropogenic landscapes. We aimed to identify critical environmental variables influencing the distribution of six genera of Asian stingless bees as well as the overall stingless bee community, to identify suitable and core anthropogenic habitats, and to identify priority habitats for conservation in Thailand. We adopted a range of modeling approaches to estimate habitat suitability based on key environmental variables such as landscape features, climate, topography, and vegetation. Our results indicate that the habitat suitability for stingless bee community is strongly influenced by landscape factors including distance to nearest forest, proportions of paddy fields, forest, field crops, and villages. Among the six genera studied, Tetragonula showed the largest areas of suitable anthropogenic habitats. This may be because Tetragonula is the most diverse and widespread of all Old World stingless bees. For the overall stingless bee community, suitable anthropogenic habitats (defined as areas with a probability of occurrence > 0.195, with this threshold determined by maximizing the sum of sensitivity and specificity), and core anthropogenic habitats (defined as areas with a probability of occurrence > 0.9), accounted for 19.06% and 0.09% of the country’s area, respectively. Approximately 2% of the country’s land are considered high-priority habitats that are suitable for at least 4 genera of stingless bees (defined as areas with a probability of occurrences > 0.5) across human-modified landscapes. However, since this study could not distinguish between wild and managed populations, the findings likely reflect both the ability of stingless bees to persist in human-modified landscapes and the potential influence of beekeeping activities. Implications for insect conservation Our findings can guide decision makers to support actions toward protecting and sustainably managing this important pollinator group, Asian stingless bees, particularly in response to ongoing environmental changes.