A review on Royal Jelly proteins and peptides

• Main Authors: Ajitha Nath Koomankode Ganapathi Ramanathan, Ananthakrishnan Jayakumaran Nair, Vetha Sundaram Sugunan
• Format: Article
• Language: English
• Published: Elsevier 2018-05-01
• Series: Journal of Functional Foods
• Subjects: Royal Jelly; Hypopharyngeal gland; Mandibular glands; Major Royal Jelly proteins; Royalactin
• Online Access: http://www.sciencedirect.com/science/article/pii/S1756464618300884

Royal Jelly (RJ) is a nutrient rich substance secreted by the hypopharyngeal glands of young worker bees. Owing to the exceptional biological properties, RJ is used in pharmaceutical, food and cosmetics industries. Several studies vouch that RJ has anti-ageing, antibacterial, anti-fatigue, anti-inflammatory, antioxidant, antitumor, anti-diabetic and antimutagenic potentials. These activities are mainly attributed to bioactive components it contains.One of the principal bioactive components is Major Royal Jelly Proteins (MRJPs) which is considered to be a major factor in honey bee queen development. In this review, we explore large number of studies that have been undertaken to elucidate the functions and characterization of Royal Jelly proteins and peptides.