IV.3.1.2. ROYAL JELLY
The biochemistry, pharmacology and medicine do not know a substance more valuable than the royal jelly. Impossible to reproduce in the laboratory, in a volume of the order of milligrams, it contains an impressive number of bioactive substances. Basically, the royal jelly is a glandular product of the nurse bees, secreted from the pharyngeal frontal glands. The bees feed with royal jelly: 1) the first three days from laying, the eggs from which develop all the three castes of the bee colony: the queen, the bees and the drones; 2) three days after laying the eggs, the future bees and the drones get a different food, only the future queens are fed with royal jelly: this is why this beekeeping food, of inestimable and inimitable value, was named royal. Properly administered, the royal jelly is a powerful drug, whose value has not yet been sufficiently explored.
Physica Features: creamy texture, appearance of viscous mass, homogeneous, fine grained, yellow or yellowish-white, characteristic odor, slightly aromatic, astringent taste, slightly sour, acid.
Chemical composition: it is composed of glandular secretion and honey in a ratio of 1:1,17; it has a pH between 3.5 and 4.5, with a score of at least 23.8% diastase. It contains: water - 24%, total nitrogen - 4.58% total protein - 30.62%, carbohydrate: some carbohydrates are carbohydrates composed of mannose and glucose (Madar et al., 1965, Hattori et al., 2006).
Proteins - the most important are: gammaglobulins (increased resistance to bacteria, fungi, viruses etc.). gelatin - an amino acid, essential component of collagen, the main structural element of mesenchymatosed reinforcement of the reticuloendothelial system, which damage, on people, is evident in the old age (Kimura, 2003; Lamberti et al. 1989).
Amino acids including all essential amino acids (Andriţoiu, 2005). Were identified: aspartic acid, glutamic acid, alanine, arginine, glutamine, glycine, leucine, lysine, methionine, proline, valine, thiamine, tyrosine, etc.. (Mărghitaş, 2005). Of the nitrogenous substances, the proteins are on average about 73.9%, and among the six major proteins, four are glycoproteins. Free amino acid concentrations reach 2.3%, and peptides represent 0.6% of nitrogenous substances. Are present a total of 29 amino acids and their derivatives, the most significant being the aspartic acid and glutamic acid. The best represented free amino acids are the proline and lysine. (Fallaschini, 1965, Kohno, 2004).
Enzymes: the most important are glucose oxidase, phosphatase and cholinesterase. It was also identified a peptide type insulin (Alles, 1989; Mateescu, 2005).
Sugars: sucrose - 3.75%, glucose, fructose, mannose (Andriţoiu, 2005), other sugars directly assimilated (Mărghitaş, 2005). The sugars are mainly represented by fructose and glucose in constant proportions similar to those of the honey. The fructose is the predominant monosaccharide. In many cases, the two monosaccharides - glucose and fructose - together account for up to 90% of total sugars. Other sugars present in much smaller quantities are: maltose, trehalose, melybiose, ribose and erlose (Mateescu, 2005).
Important acids: a) 10-hydroxy-2-decenoic with certain antitumor properties (it lyses the DNA of tumor cells) b) 9-hydroxy-decenoic c) sebacic acid, formic, tartaric, citric, acetic, butyric, d) 11 carboxylic acids (J. Madar et al., 1965; Andriţoiu V., 2005, Hattori N. , 2007). It is considered that the most important component of the royal jelly is the acid 10-hydroxy-2-decenoic and octanoic acid (Lercker GP et al., 1981; Mărghitaş, 2005; Andriţoiu V., 2006, Guo et al. , 2007).
Vitamins: a) the liposoluble – the group A, D, E, K -, B the group of B vitamins and vitamin C; b) vitamin substances such as acetylcholine with neurotransmitter role - 1 mg / g dry weight - and gluconic acid - 0.6% of fresh weight (Mateescu, 2005). It also contains a vitamin substance that prevents aging.
Hormones, particularly estrogens and somathormons (Andriţoiu, 2006).
Minerals: All minerals existing in the pollen and honey. (Andriţoiu, 2002, 2004, 2006).
Other substances, antibiotics, antibacterial, antiviral, growth factors, etc..(Neacșu, 2002; Mateescu, 2005; Mărghitaș, 2005; Andriţoiu, 2006, 2008; Andriţoiuși Andriţoiu, 2010).