Palinological analysis, protein content and antioxidant effect of papaver somniferum L. bee pollen

Bee pollen is a product of bees collecting pollen from plants, adding nectar and oral secretions into a pellet, storing it on their hind legs and carrying it to the hive. Papaver somniferum bee pollen is a bee product obtained by bees collecting the pollen of plants of the genus Papaver belonging to the Papaveraceae family. This pollen is considered as a foodstuff with high nutritional value and has many biological activities. In this study, the botanical origin of bee pollen samples collected from apiaries located in the areas where Papaver somniferum is cultivated in Afyonkarahisar, Denizli, Konya and Kütahya provinces were confirmed by pollen analyses. Protein content (%), total phenolic content, antioxidant activity capacity of pollen samples were determined by using DPPH- (2,2-diphenyl-1-picrylhydrazyl) and ABTS-+ (2,2'-Azino-bis (3-ethylbenzothiazoline-6-sulfonic acid)) method. It was determined that all of the samples were collected from 90,3-98,4% monofloral Papaver somniferum plants. The protein contents of Papaver somniferum bee pollen samples were determined as 11,4-13,4 g/100 g, total phenolic content as 7,95-16,84 mg.GAE/g, DPPH• activity as 10,32-13,38 mgTE/g, ABTS•+ activity as 24,48-41,97 mgTE/g. Studies on monofloral bee pollen produced in Türkiye are insufficient and studies in this field should be continued.