Burak Demirci - Department of Biology, Faculty of Science, Sivas Cumhuriyet University, Sivas, Turkiye
Sevgi Durna Dastan - Department of Biology, Faculty of Science, Sivas Cumhuriyet University, Sivas, Turkiye

Pollen, one of the bee products, is an important nutrient for bees. Pollen is mainly used for feeding adult, old and larval bees to meet their needs for protein, vitamins and minerals. Since the protein content of pollen meets the basic protein needs of bees, it should be brought into the hive in sufficient quantity and stored under suitable conditions. Likewise, bee pollen has nutritional and therapeutic properties for human health. Numerous studies have been conducted in different countries to evaluate the physicochemical and biological properties of bee pollen, which is widely used in apitherapy, pharmaceutical industry, food industry and cosmetic industry. The physical properties such as color, odor, and pH of pollen extracted from beehives may vary depending on the conditions, climate, and flower structure of each region. In addition, the pollen's constituents such as proteins, sugars, carbohydrates, fats, vitamins and minerals can change depending on the conditions in each region. In short, there are differences in the various physicochemical compositions of pollen. Moreover, it shows that the biological activity and functional effects of bee pollen in vitro and in vivo may vary according to the differences in chemical constituents. In this study, some properties of bee pollen were evaluated in Sivas province, central Anatolia, accompanied by scientific evidence showing the effectiveness of these traditional practices. The determination of moisture content of pollen samples from different places and their antiproliferative effect on MCF -۷ cell line were compared. In general, it was found that the ethanol extracts of all pollen samples had cytotoxic activities on the MCF -۷ cell line, while the moisture ratios were within standard ranges.

Apitherapy, Beekeeping, Ethnopharmacology, Pollen