Healing honey

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Tags: discovery, medical research, QAAFI, winter-2011

An Australian honey has been found to have the most powerful anti-bacterial properties of any honey in the world. Image istockphoto

Honey sourced from an Australian native myrtle tree has been found to have the most powerful anti-bacterial properties of any honey in the world.

A Brisbane-based research group found the honey had very high levels of the anti-bacterial compound Methylglyoxal (MGO) and could be used to treat antibiotic-resistant infections that commonly occur in hospitals and nursing homes.

Led by the Queensland Alliance for Agriculture and Food Innovation (QAAFI), a partnership between The University of Queensland and the Queensland Government’s Department of Employment, Economic Development and Innovation (DEEDI), the research is being carried out in conjunction with The Australian Organic Honey Company & Medi Bioactive Australia.

The project has involved comprehensive trials with honey harvested from a native species of myrtle (leptospermum polygalifolium), which is distributed along the Australian eastern seaboard from the south coast of NSW to Cape York.

CEO of The Australian Organic Honey Company & Medi Bioactive Australia, Carolyn MacGill, said the findings had shown anti-bacterial potency levels that could allow for the development of highly effective anti-bacterial treatments.

Chief researcher, QAAFI scientist Dr Yasmina Sultanbawa, said the potency of the honeys meant only a small amount was required to fight infections such as Methicillin-Resistant Staphylococcus aureus (MRSA).

“The sheer strength, due to high levels of active compounds, has meant that we have been able to completely inhibit MRSA for example in in-vitro studies with a relatively small quantity of the honey,” Dr Sultanbawa said.

“This means potential products could maintain significant levels of anti-bacterial activity even in surface wounds where the honey is diluted in the bed of the infection.

“The presence of MRSA in a wound is a matter of concern and MRSA-colonised wounds are an increasingly urgent problem in hospitals and nursing homes.”

By Julie Lloyd

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