toxicity of certain honeys
Arnold Trachtenberg (Thu, 25 Dec 2008 15:32:32 PST)

Nurhayat Sütlüpmar1, Afife Mat1 and Yurdagül Satganoglu2

(1) Present address: Department of Pharmacognosy, Faculty of Pharmacy,
University of Istanbul, 34452 Istanbul, Turkey

(2) Kartal Occupational Diseases Hospital, Istanbul, Turkey

Received: 19 August 1992 Accepted: 13 October 1992

Abstract One of the food intoxications encountered in Turkey is the case
caused by toxic honey made by bees fromRhododendron species.R.luteum
andR.ponticum are the two species which grow in the north regions of
Turkey. Grayanotoxins, mainly Grayanotoxin I (Andromedotoxin) occurring
only in Ericaceae plants, are the compounds responsible for poisoning.
In this investigation, the diagnosis and treatment of 11 cases of
poisoning admitted to Kartal Occupational Diseases Hospital between 1983
and 1988 are presented. The results of the light microscopic and
chemical analysis of toxic honey samples are compared with those of the
ordinary honey samples and the extract ofRhododendron leaves.

Key words Toxic honey - Poisoning - Rhododendron - Andromedotoxin -
Grayanotoxin

Part of this study was presented at the 8th Meeting on Vegetable Crude
Drugs, Istanbul, 19–21 May 1989