Ongoing research has revealed that polyfloral honey is a promising candidate for protecting human skin cells from premature aging and UV-induced cell damage, with potential for future clinical and cosmetic applications.
Honey is already well known in the medical and cosmetic industries for its antioxidant, antibacterial, anti-inflammatory and wound-healing properties, and sterile medical products derived from honey already exist in the form of bandages, gels and ointments for burns and difficult-to-heal wounds.
“I have always been interested in the fact that certain honeys, such as Manuka honey, are used for medical-grade applications. My background in medical biology and my personal interest in beekeeping and cosmetic science inspired this project,” says Dr Fikie Fruya Kavak, a member of Professor Margherita Maioli’s research team at the University of Sassari in Italy. “This led us to wonder whether high-quality polyfloral honey could show measurable protective effects on human skin cells.”
The skin is the human body’s main barrier to the environment, but ultraviolet (UV) radiation from the sun can significantly accelerate skin aging and cellular stress, which can be a precursor to skin cancer. Professor Maiori’s team not only wanted to investigate whether honey could protect human skin cells from UV damage, promote cell recovery and prevent skin aging, but also what molecular and genetic mechanisms were involved.
For this study, the team first grew cultures of the cells that make up human skin, including skin stem cells, fibroblasts, and keratinocytes. These were cultured together in a continuous flow bioreactor system to simulate the physiological environment of human skin.
Before exposing the cultures to UV light, some cells were treated with 1% polyfloral honey for 48 h. The team then assessed how the treated and untreated cells responded to UV-induced stress.
The research team also used real-time quantitative PCR to analyze the expression of selected genes related to cellular aging, stress response, and tissue regeneration. The research team was also interested in genes associated with stemness (such as stem cells). Stemness is the ability of a cell to differentiate or copy itself.
The main finding was that 1% multifloral honey pretreatment appeared to support protective and regulatory responses to UV-induced stress in both skin stem cells and fibroblasts.
In skin stem cells, honey increased the expression of stemness-related markers while decreasing the expression of aging-related genes. ”
Dr. Fikiye Fulya Kavak, University of Sassari, Italy
In these cells, honey treatment reduced nitric oxide release and increased antioxidant capacity. This suggests that honey treatment may help support antioxidant defenses under UV-induced stress conditions.
Through genetic analysis, the research team found that honey treatment helps control cell proliferation and regeneration signals, as well as increasing the expression of cellular stress protection genes.
“What’s particularly interesting is that honey seems to help cells find a healthier balance after UV stress,” says Dr. Kabak. “Rather than prompting cells to over-repair, they appear to support protective mechanisms while regulating regeneration-related signals.”
The research team’s work is still ongoing, and they are further investigating the molecular mechanisms at work. “We have been working on validation studies at the protein level to see if the molecular changes observed at the mRNA level are also reflected at the protein level,” says Dr. Kavak.
Although these findings hold promising applications in the medical and cosmetic fields, the research team emphasizes that polyfloral honey should not yet be considered for clinical applications or as a sunscreen replacement. “Because our study was conducted in a cell-based experimental model rather than in humans, further laboratory, preclinical, and clinical studies are needed before any practical recommendations can be made,” Dr. Kavak says.
This knowledge could contribute to the development of new cosmetic or clinical skin formulations, especially if the active properties of honey can be delivered in a controlled and biocompatible manner, such as the nanofiber-based systems the team is currently developing.
“These nanofibers have already been characterized, and biological evaluation is currently underway,” Dr. Kabak says. “This represents an important next step, as nanofiber-based systems may provide a more advanced platform to study potential skin-related applications of natural bioactive compounds such as polyfloral honey.”
sauce:
Society for Experimental Biology
