Differentiation Between Natural and Commercial Bee Venoms Using Fluorescence Spectroscopy

Honey bee venom (HBV, A. m. scutellata) contains polypeptides [melittin, mast cell degranulating peptide (MCD), adolapin and apamin] and enzymes.The aim of the present study was to differentiate between commercial and natural bee venoms using aqueous olive leaf extract (AOLE) employing fluorescence techniques. Tryptophan mainly responsible for the fluorescence and hence widely used as a tool to monitor conformational changes in proteins. Changes in the fluorescence intensities with blue shifts were obtained with bee venoms. Binding of AOLE constituents near the active site of the enzyme could be evidenced and possible modes of interaction are discussed. The fluorescence method used was rapid and sensitive and was able to differentiate between commercial and natural bee venoms utilizing AOLE