Abstract
Bee venom (Apis mellifera L., BV) has been used as a cosmetic ingredient for antiaging, anti-inflammatory and antibacterial functions. The aim of this study was to access the skin sensitization of BV, a Buehler test was conducted fifty healthy male Hartley guinea pigs with three groups; Group G1 (BV-sensitization group, 20 animals), group G2 (the positive control-sensitization group, 20 animals), and group G3 (the ethyl alcohol-sensitization group, 10 animals). The exposure on the left flank for induction was repeated three times at intervals of one week. Two weeks after the last induction, the challenge was performed on the right flank. No treatment-related clinical signs or body weight changes were observed during the study period. The average skin reaction evaluated by erythema and edema on the challenge sites and sensitization rate in the BV-sensitization group at 30 hours were 0.0 and 0%, respectively, which are substantially low compared with in positive control group (average skin reaction: 0.55, sensitization rate: 40%) and identical with in vehicle control group, representing a weak sensitizing potential. The average skin reaction and sensitization rate observed at 54 hours were 0.0 and 0% in the BV-sensitization group, respectively, and 0.25 and 20% in the positive control group, respectively. It was concluded that BV classified to Grade I, induced no sensitization when tested in guinea pigs and may provide a developmental basis for a cosmetic ingredient or external application for topical uses.
Article PDF
Similar content being viewed by others
Avoid common mistakes on your manuscript.
References
Baek, Y.H., Huh, J.E., Lee, J.D., Choi, Do. Y. and Park, D.S. (2006). Antinociceptive effect and the mechanism of bee venom acupuncture (Apipuncture) on inflammatory pain in the rat model of collagen-induced arthritis: Mediation by α2-adrenoceptors. Brain. Res., 16, 305–310.
Castro, H.J., Mendez-Lnocencio, J.I., Omidvar, B., Omidvar, J., Santilli, J., Nielsen, H.S., Pavot, A.P., Richert, J.R. and Bellanti, J.A. (2005). A Phase I Study of the safety of honeybee venom extract as a possible treatment for patients with progressive forms of multiple sclerosis. Allergy Asthma Pro., 26, 470–476.
Chaudhry, Q., Piclin, N., Cotterill, J., Pintore, M., Price, N.R., Chrétien, J.R. and Roncaglioni, A. (2010). Global QSAR models of skin sensitisers for regulatory purposes. Chem. Cent. J., 4, S5.
Han, S.M., Lee, K.G., Yeo, J.H., Kweon, H.Y., Woo, S.O., Lee, M.Y., Baek, H.J. and Park, K.K. (2007a). Inhibitory effect of bee venom against ultraviolet B induced MMP-1 and MMP-3 in human dermal fibroblasts. J. Apic. Res., 46, 94–98.
Han, S.M., Lee, K.G., Yeo, J.H., Kweon, H.Y. and Woo, S.O. (2007b). A simplified purificating method of bee venom, Patent, Korea, 10-0758814.
Han, S.M., Lee, K.G., Yeo, J.H., Baek, H.J. and Park, K.K. (2010). Antibacterial and anti-inflammatory effects of honeybee (Apis mellifera) venom against acne-inducing bacteria. J. Med. Plant. Res., 4, 459–464.
Han, S., Lee, K., Yeo, J., Kim, W. and Park, K. (2011). Biological effects of treatment of an animal skin wound with honeybee (Apis mellifera L.) venom. J. Plast Reconstr. Aesthet. Surg., 64, 67–72.
Ip, S.W., Liao, S.S., Lin, S.Y., Lin, J.P., Yang, J.S., Lin, M.L., Chen, G.W., Lu, H.F., Lin, M.W., Han, S.M. and Chung, J.G. (2008). The role of mitochondria in bee venom-induced apoptosis in human breast cancer MCF7 cells. In Vivo. 22, 237–245.
Jang, M.H., Shin, M.C., Lim, S., Han, S.M., Park, H.J., Shin, I., Lee, J.S., Kim, K.A., Kim, E.H. and Kim, C.J. (2003). Bee venom induces apoptosis and inhibits expression of cyclooxy-genase-2 mRNA in human lung cancer cell line NCI-H1299. J. Pharmacol. Sci., 91, 95–104.
Lariviere, W.R. and Melzack, R. (1996). The bee venom test: A new tonic-pain test. Pain. 66, 271–277.
Park, H.J., Lee, S.H., Son, D.J., Oh, K.W., Kim, K.H., Song, H.S., Kim, G.J., Oh, G.T., Yoon, D.Y. and Hong, J.T. (2004). Antiar-thritic effect of bee venom: inhibition of inflammation mediator generation by suppression of NF-kappaB through interaction with the p50 subunit. Arthritis Rheum., 50, 3504–3515.
Park, M.H., Choi, M.S., Kwak, D.H., Oh, K.W., Yoon, D.Y., Han, S.B., Song, H.S., Song, M.J. and Hong, J.T. (2010). Anti-cancer effect of bee venom in prostate cancer cells through activation of caspase pathway via inactivation of NF-κB. Prostate. 17, 801–812.
Piek, T. (1986). Venoms of the Hymenoptera, Academic press, London.
Soman, N.R., Baldwin, S.L., Hu, G., Marsh, J.N., Lanza, G.M., Heuser, J.E., Arbeit, J.M., Wickline, S.A. and Schlesinger, P.H. (2009). Molecularly targeted nanocarriers deliver the cytolytic peptide melittin specifically to tumor cells in mice, reducing tumor growth. J. Clin. Invest., 119, 2830–2842.
Son, D.J., Lee, J.W., Lee, Y.H., Song, H.S., Lee, C.K. and Hong, J.T. (2007). Therapeutic application of anti-arthritis, pain-releasing, and anti-cancer effects of bee venom and its constituent compounds. Pharmacol. Ther., 115, 246–270.
Wang, C., Chen, T., Zhang, N., Yang, M., Li, B., Lü, X., Cao, X. and Ling, C. (2009). Melittin, a major component of bee venom, sensitizes human hepatocellular carcinoma cells to tumor necrosis factor-related apoptosis-inducing ligand (TRAIL)-induced apoptosis by activating CaMKII-TAK1-JNK/p38 and inhibiting IkappaBalpha kinase-NFkappaB. J. Biol. Chem., 284, 3804–3813.
Vinardell, M.P. and Mitjans, M. (2008). Alternative methods for eye and skin irritation tests: an overview. J. Pharm. Sci., 97, 46–59.
Author information
Authors and Affiliations
Corresponding author
Rights and permissions
This article is licensed under a Creative Commons Attribution 4.0 International License, which permits use, sharing, adaptation, distribution and reproduction in any medium or format, as long as you give appropriate credit to the original author(s) and the source, provide a link to the Creative Commons licence, and indicate if changes were made. The images or other third party material in this article are included in the article's Creative Commons licence, unless indicated otherwise in a credit line to the material. If material is not included in the article's Creative Commons licence and your intended use is not permitted by statutory regulation or exceeds the permitted use, you will need to obtain permission directly from the copyright holder. To view a copy of this licence, visit http://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/4.0/.
About this article
Cite this article
Han, S.M., Lee, G.G. & Park, K.K. Skin Sensitization Study of Bee Venom (Apis mellifera L.) in Guinea Pigs. Toxicol Res. 28, 1–4 (2012). https://doi.org/10.5487/TR.2012.28.1.001
Received:
Revised:
Accepted:
Published:
Issue Date:
DOI: https://doi.org/10.5487/TR.2012.28.1.001