Honeybees rely on plants for everything they need to keep the colony running; plant nectar and pollen are their only carbohydrate and protein food sources. By foraging to satisfy their basic nutritional demand, honeybees inevitably gather specialized plant metabolites as part of the nectar and pollen. In general, these compounds possess biological activity which may become relevant in fighting pests and pathogens in the hive. The third plant derived bee product, besides honey and bee pollen, is propolis (bee glue), which comes from plant resins. It is not a food; it is used as a building material and a defensive substance. Thus, the beehive is rich in specialized plant metabolites, produced by many different plant species and the expression "Phytochemistry of honeybees" is not inappropriate. However, it is virtually impossible to perform a detailed overview of the phytochemical features of honey and pollen in a review article of this nature, for reasons of space. The present review deals with propolis, because it is the bee product with highest concentration of specialized plant metabolites and has valuable pharmacological activities. The most recent developments concerning plant sources of propolis, bees' preferences to particular plants, the application of metabolomic approaches and chemometrics to propolis research and the problems concerning standardization of propolis are summarized. The overview covers the literature published in the last decade, after 2007.

中文翻译：

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蜜蜂的植物化学

蜜蜂依靠植物来维持蜂群运转所需的一切；植物花蜜和花粉是它们唯一的碳水化合物和蛋白质食物来源。通过觅食来满足基本的营养需求，蜜蜂不可避免地会收集专门的植物代谢物作为花蜜和花粉的一部分。一般来说，这些化合物具有生物活性，可能与蜂巢中的害虫和病原体作斗争有关。除了蜂蜜和蜂花粉之外，第三种植物衍生的蜂产品是蜂胶（蜂胶），它来自植物树脂。它不是食物；它被用作建筑材料和防御物质。因此，蜂箱富含专门的植物代谢物，由许多不同的植物物种产生，“蜜蜂的植物化学”这一表述并不恰当。然而，由于篇幅原因，几乎不可能在这种性质的评论文章中详细概述蜂蜜和花粉的植物化学特征。本综述涉及蜂胶，因为蜂胶是专门植物代谢物浓度最高的蜂产品，具有宝贵的药理活性。总结了有关蜂胶植物来源、蜜蜂对特定植物的偏好、代谢组学方法和化学计量学在蜂胶研究中的应用以及有关蜂胶标准化问题的最新进展。概述涵盖了 2007 年之后过去十年发表的文献。因为它是专门植物代谢物浓度最高的蜂产品，具有宝贵的药理活性。总结了有关蜂胶植物来源、蜜蜂对特定植物的偏好、代谢组学方法和化学计量学在蜂胶研究中的应用以及有关蜂胶标准化问题的最新进展。概述涵盖了 2007 年之后过去十年发表的文献。因为它是专门植物代谢物浓度最高的蜂产品，具有宝贵的药理活性。总结了有关蜂胶植物来源、蜜蜂对特定植物的偏好、代谢组学方法和化学计量学在蜂胶研究中的应用以及有关蜂胶标准化问题的最新进展。概述涵盖了 2007 年之后过去十年发表的文献。总结了代谢组学方法和化学计量学在蜂胶研究中的应用以及有关蜂胶标准化的问题。概述涵盖了 2007 年之后过去十年发表的文献。总结了代谢组学方法和化学计量学在蜂胶研究中的应用以及有关蜂胶标准化的问题。概述涵盖了 2007 年之后过去十年发表的文献。