Antimicrobial activity of Malaysian honey against staphylococcus aureus and pseudomonas aeruginosa / Abdul Muhaimin Mohd Nasir@Nazir

The emergence of antibiotic resistance bacteria has lowered the success rates of antibiotic therapy thus becoming a major concern world-wide. This has resulted in the re-evaluation of the therapeutic use of ancient remedies including honey. The antibacterial activity of honey has been associated with its osmolarity, acidity, hydrogen peroxide, and non-hydrogen peroxide components. The aim of our study was to investigate the potential of Malaysian honeys namely Tualang, Gelam, Acacia, and Nenas as an antibacterial agent against Staphylococcus aureus and Pseudomonas aeruginosa. The antibacterial activity was examined by determining the MIC using the broth dilution assay on microtiter plates while MBC was determined by re-inoculation into agar plates from a well with each concentration of honey where bacterial growth was inhibited (from the broth of MIC assay). The honey samples were tested at 45%, 39%, 33%, 21%, 15%, 9%, and 3% (v/v) dilution. The result showed that all tested honey including artificial honey had substantial antibacterial activity against S.aureus and P.aeruginosa. Manuka honey had the lowest MIC values compared to other tested honeys and artificial honey, which are 15% (v/v) for S.aureus and 21% (v/v) for P.aeruginosa. Among local honeys, Acacia and Gelam honey had the lowest MIC value
(21% v/v), and thus the best activity, against S.aureus. While Tualang and Nenas honey had higher MIC against S.aureus which is 27% (v/v) compared to other tested honey. When tested against P.aeruginosa, all four types of local honeys had equal MIC value (27% v/v). Malaysian honeys exhibited variable activities against different microorganisms. The difference in floral source of honey may contributed to the variation in the potency of the antibacterial activity. Further research should be done to assess the antibacterial activity of Malaysian honeys to reveal its true potential.