Abstract

A REVIEW: PHARMACOTHERAPEUTICS OF BEE VENOM

Rahul Shimpi*, Pooja Chaudhari, Renuka Deshmukh, Shital Devare, Yogesh Bagad, Mayur Bhurat

ABSTRACT

Apitherapy is the use of honey bee products for medical purposes, this include bee venom, raw honey, royal jelly, pollen, propolis, and beeswax. Apitoxin, or honeybee venom, is a bitter colorless liquid. The active portion of apitoxin is a complex mixture of enzymes, amines, carbohydrate, phospholipids volatile oils and proteins, which causes local inflammation and acts as an anticoagulant. The venom is produced in the abdomen of worker bees from a mixture of acidic and basic secretions. A honeybee can inject 0.1 mg of venom via its stinger. Whereas bee venom therapy is the use of live bee stings (or injectable venom) to treat various diseases such as arthritis, rheumatoid arthritis, multiple sclerosis (MS), lupus, sciatica, low back pain, and tennis elbow to name a few. The present review article includes a thorough discussion on composition, collection, medical uses and adverse reactions of bee venom.

Keywords: Bee Venom, Mellitin, Apamine, Phospholipase A2.