Determination of Antioxidant and Antibacterial Activities of Honey-Loaded Topical Formulations: A Focus on Western Australian Honeys  
[PERSON]  
1 Division of Pharmacy, School of Allied Health, University of Western Australia, Crawley 6009, Australia; [EMAIL_ADDRESS]  
[PERSON]  
1 Division of Pharmacy, School of Allied Health, University of Western Australia, Crawley 6009, Australia; [EMAIL_ADDRESS]  
[PERSON]  
2 School of Biomedical Sciences, University of Western Australia, Crawley 6009, Australia; [EMAIL_ADDRESS]  
[PERSON]  
1 Division of Pharmacy, School of Allied Health, University of Western Australia, Crawley 6009, Australia; [EMAIL_ADDRESS]  
[PERSON]  
1 Division of Pharmacy, School of Allied Health, University of Western Australia, Crawley 6009, Australia; [EMAIL_ADDRESS]  
Footnote 28: email: {phenolics and flavonoids [5; 6; 7; 8; 9; 10]. To date, more than 400 bioactive compounds have been isolated from honeys, which make them a complex but also interesting natural product for medicinal purposes along with their widespread use as a foodstuff and tasting agent [7; 8; 9]. Given its high sugar content, sugar-induced osmosis is one of the key antibacterial contributors of honey [10]. On the other hand, the amount of water existing in a honey plays a significant role in influencing its physicochemical properties (taste, color, solubility, specific gravity, viscosity, solubility and crystallization propensity) and has also an impact on potential honey fermentation and microbial spoilage [4; 5; 6]. Despite their relatively low concentrations,'minor constituents' are considered important honey components as they not only influence the organoleptic characteristics of a honey but potentially also impact its bioactivities and medicinal properties. These'minor constituents' include flavonoids (e.g., kaempfer, quercetin, isorhamnetin myricetin, pinobanksin, rutin, galangin, genkwanin, luteolin, apigenin, tricetin, chrysin, pinocombrin, pinostrobin), simple phenolic and other organic acids (e.g., gallic acid, benzoic acid, ellagic acid, vanillic acid, protocatechuric acid, methyl syringae, syringic acid, 4-hydroxybenzoic acid, chlorogenic acid, caffeic acid, \(p\)-coumaric acid, ferulic acid), proteins (i.e., enzymes), amino acids, minerals (Cu, Ca, Fe, Zn, Mg, P, K, Zn, Na), vitamins (specifically vitamin C, vitamin B6, thiamine, niacin, riboflavin and pantothenic acid) and pigments alongside various other compounds [2; 3; 4; 5; 6; 7; 8; 9; 10]. Numerous in vitro and in vivo studies have revealed antimicrobial [2; 10; 11; 12], antiviral [11; 12; 13; 14], antifungal [2; 10; 11; 12], anti-cancer [11; 12; 13; 14; 15] and antidiabetic [2; 10; 13] activities, which have often been related to these minor constituents. Furthermore, the preventive role of honey on the human cardiovascular, nervous, respiratory and gastrointestinal systems have also been reported [11; 12; 13; 14; 15; 16]. The reported phenolic compounds in Coastal Peppermint honey are kojic acid, ellagic acid, epicatechin, gallic acid, luminichrome, luteolin, syringic acid and m-coumaric acid [6; 7; 8; 9; 10]. Jarrah honey contains a variety of phenolic compounds, such as taxidolin, kojic acid, gallic acid, lumichrome, o-anisic acid, chlorogenic acid, tricetin, vanillic acid, m-coumaric acid and hesperitin [7; 8; 9; 10]. The reported phenolic compounds in Manuka honey are chrysin, caffeic acid, galangin, ferulic acid, isorhamnetin, gallic acid, kaempfer, syringic acid, luteolin, pinobanksin, pinocombrin and quercetin [5; 6; 7; 8; 9; 10]. Of particular interest with respect to their antimicrobial activity is the existence of methylglyoxal (MGO) in many honey obtained from various _Leptospermum_ species, amongst them Manuka honey from _Leptospermum scoparium_[5; 6; 7; 8; 9]. In vivo, reactive oxygen species (ROS) and free radicals are formed in various cellular bio-chemical reactions, such as in mitochondria (during the aerobic generation of oxygen [17; 18], during the metabolism of fatty acids [19] and during the metabolism of drugs [20; 21; 22]).