Evaluación de la Actividad Antimicrobiana en Mieles Comerciales de Ecuador

In recent decades, the indiscriminate use of antimicrobials in the treatment of human and animal infections has led to the emergence of antibiotic-resistant phenotypes in the main pathogens that cause these infections. Given these phenomena, in recent years the search for new pharmaceutical formulations has begun to focus on treatments based on natural products, based on the easy availability of raw materials and the potential of these products, which have been ignored until recently. Among these natural compounds, honey has attracted the attention of many researchers due to its well-known beneficial effects on health. Its antimicrobial capacity is one of the biological properties that distinguish honey from other natural products. The factors responsible for this activity are mainly osmolarity, acidity, and particularly the presence of hydrogen peroxide, which is formed from the oxidation of glucose by the enzyme glucose oxidase during its ripening period. When hydrogen peroxide is eliminated by the addition of catalase, some honeys still display significant antibacterial activity. This activity is known as non-peroxide-dependent antibacterial activity, which is primarily caused by the non-peroxide factors in honey, such as lysozyme, phenolic acids, and flavonoids (Alvarez-Suarez et al., 2009; 2010). These properties have been demonstrated by their ability to eliminate gastrointestinal infections caused by bacterial species such as Salmonella ssp. and Shigella ssp., as well as enteropathogenic E. coli (Alvarez-Suarez et al., 2013). Currently, there is no research detailing the biological properties of the main honeys produced in Ecuador, making it essential to conduct such studies to understand their potential as a natural source of bioactive compounds and their biological properties for the treatment of bacterial infections. The objective of this study was to determine the antimicrobial capacity of different commercial honeys in the metropolitan district of Quito, Ecuador. A total of 17 samples of commercial honeys from various supermarkets in Quito, originating from different retailers, were analyzed.