Investigation of the effect of Bingol polyfloral bee pollen extract on the development of honeybees under in vitro and in vivo conditions

In this study, the effects of bee pollen extract collected from Bingöl province on the development of honey bees were evaluated under both in vitro and in vivo conditions. The bee pollens obtained from the Bingöl region, which possesses a rich vegetation cover, were subjected to palynological analysis and protein quantification. The ultrasonic assissted water-based extraction method was applied to obtain the pollen extract, which was then analyzed in terms of protein content and amino acid composition. The extraction yield of the sample used in the in vitro trial was determined as 52.7%, with a protein content of 9.80%. Amino acid analysis revealed that proline (764.83 μg/g) was the most abundant amino acid, followed by asparagine (121.52 μg/g), glycine (61.83 μg/g), and alanine (36.36 μg/g); similar proportions were observed in the extract used for the in vivo trial. The in vitro study assessed parameters including honey bee longevity, body weight gain, and water and feed consumption. The most favorable results were obtained in the honeypollen mixture and 5% extract groups, while higher doses exhibited adverse effects. In the in vivo experiment, the number of brood frames in the 5% extract group was recorded as an average of 16 by the end of the season, compared to 12 in the control group. Similarly, the brood area was 14 929.08 cm² in the extract group and 9 870.59 cm² in the control group. Honey yield was significantly higher in the extract group, with 16.904 kg/colony versus 11.164 kg/colony in the control group. These findings indicate that the application of the extract significantly enhanced worker bee population, queen reproductive performance, and honey production capacity (p<0.01). Furthermore, the honey samples obtained from the in vivo study were evaluated in terms of color, physicochemical, and melissopalynological characteristics. According to color measurements, the extract sample exhibited L: 66.26, a: 10.96, and b: 50.71 values, while the sugar syrup sample displayed L: 77.64, a: 2.72, and b: 39.48, indicating that the extractderived honey had a darker and more saturated color. Physicochemical analysis revealed that the extract sample had a moisture content of 15.20±0.35%, proline content of 929.78±27.89 mg/kg, diastase activity of 43.5±5.3 DN, and total pollen count (TPS) of 64.075. In contrast, the sugar syrup sample showed values of 15.40±0.36%, 912.00±27.36 mg/kg, 39.1±4.7 DN, and 35.723 TPS, respectively. Melissopalynological analysis demonstrated that Salix sp. (28.00%), Astragalus sp. (25.20%), and Trifolium sp. (13.10%) were dominant in the extract sample, whereas Centaurea sp. (46,00%), Astragalus sp. (35.60%), and Trifolium sp. (10.00%) were predominant in the sugar syrup sample, confirming a more diverse floral origin in the extract group.