Effect of the botanical origin on the lipid content and fatty acid composition of monofloral bee pollen

Lipids are among the main components of pollen, playing an important role in both bee and human nutrition. Different pollens vary in composition, respectively affecting the growth and productivity of bee colonies. This study aimed to determine the effect of botanical origin on total lipid and fatty acid composition of bee pollen. From the analysis of 46 monofloral pollen species, the average total lipid content was 3.19%. The highest content (13.6%) was recorded in the pollen of Echinops ritro, and the lowest share (0.4%) in the pollen of Erica manipuliflora. Differences were also observed in the composition of fatty acids between plant species. In the analysis of the fatty acid profile in 20 monofloral pollen types through Gas Chromatography-Mass Spectrometry, alpha-linolenic acid (C18:3) dominated at 31.5%, followed by oleic (cis C18:1), palmitic (C16:0), linoleic (C18:2) and stearic (C18:0) acids, in shares of 21.2%, 14.3%, 12.4% and 5.7% respectively. The pollen of Cephalaria transylvanica stood out for the high content of alpha-linolenic acid (C18:3) (77.86%), Eucalyptus sp. for the percentage of oleic acid (cis C18:1) (68.23%), Echinops ritro for the percentage of linoleic acid (C18:2) (38.76%), Ranunculus sp. for palmitic acid (C16:0) (35.37%), Convolvulus arvensis for stearic acid (C18:0) (24.57%) and Helianthus annuus for eicosenoic acid (C20:1) (24.3%). The findings of this study confirm that bee pollen, is a notable source of lipids, especially polyunsaturated fatty acids, which further elevates its nutritional value.