Some of our Research Partners
We have worked with each of the following organisations, and many more besides, on far-reaching research projects.
In-House Research Lead by Shankar Katekhaye PhD
Shankar works at Nature’s Laboratory, home of Herbal Apothecary, as a Director of Research and Quality, a post he has held since May 2021. He has been associated with Natures laboratory as a Quality and Research Manager since June 2019. Before this he has worked as Knowledge Transfer Partnership (KTP) Associate. This was a joint project between University of Bradford and Nature’s Laboratory (May 2017-May 2019). Shankar is graduate in Pharmacy with Masters in Natural Products (Traditional medicine) and holds a doctorate in Phytochemistry and Pharmacognosy.
Shankar works on the development and implementation of our quality management system. He has helped us to implement a robust quality management system in compliance with ISO9001:2015 and HACCP system. Shankar has been also involved in research based on Apiceuticals. Shankar has research the biological activity of propolis and quality control of BeeVital products.
Our in-house laboratory was established by Shankar and now Nature’s Laboratory offers the analytical services and contract research in the field of herbal, apiceuticals and natural products. We have successfully undertaken projects on product development, content analysis, standardization of herbals.
In Shankar’s opinion, bringing age-old knowledge and unexplored wealth of herbal medicine to the public would be valuable contribution to the health care system. Delivering quality medicine is at the core of his ethos as a herbal professional. As a result, building sustainable supply chains for herbals is paramount to his efforts in our business.
Current Collaborations
PhD Project - Beginning 2023
We are delighted to be working with the University of East London, beginning a brand new PhD project in 2023. This project will look at the extraction of plant chemicals from propolis and other herbal medicines.
The PhD candidate, Samra, is based at Herbal Apothecary in Whitby and working alongside our team. This project should provide valuable insights which can help us improve the efficiency of extraction, leading to better outcomes for patients.
IPRG
We continue to coordinate the work of the International Propolis Research Group, bringing together experts in propolis research from around the globe.
The IPRG has hosted two online conferences in recent years, and we're planning a physical conference in 2023. Find out more by visiting the IPRG website.
In-House Laboratory Equipment
Our laboratory is home to a brand new HPLC (High Performance Liquid Chromatography) system. Shankar is a highly qualified Research Chemist who joined Nature’s Laboratory under the Knowledge Transfer Partnership scheme. Supported by the University of Bradford, Centre for Pharmaceutical Engineering Science, the KTP pairs academics with businesses.
We are now able to carry out both routine in-process analysis as well as specific research work into plant materials and bee products. Professor Anant Paradkar, Director of the Centre for Pharmaceutical Engineering Science, supervises our research experiments.
Some of our Research Papers
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Isolation of a Novel Flavanonol and an Alkylresorcinol with Highly Potent Anti-Trypanosomal Activity from Libyan Propolis
Read nowTwelve propolis samples from different parts of Libya were investigated for their phytochemical constituents. Ethanol extracts of the samples and some purified compounds were tested against Trypanosoma brucei, Plasmodium falciparum and against two helminth species, Trichinella spiralis and Caenorhabditis elegans,...
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New anti-trypanosomal active prenylated compounds from African propolis
Read nowThe secondary metabolite composition of propolis has always been corroborated on the vegetation surrounding the bee hive. The plants chosen by the bees seem to exhibit activity to protect the hive from the surrounding environmental pressures which include protozoal attack....
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Analysis of sugars in bee pollen and propolis by ligand exchange chromatography in combination with pulsed amperometric detection and mass spectrometry
Read nowThe analysis of sugars in the natural products propolis and bee pollen was carried by high-performance thin layer chromatography (HPTLC), high-performance ligand exchange chromatography with pulsed amperometric detection (HPLEC-PAD) and HPLEC coupled to liquid chromatography–electrospray ionisation mass spectrometry (LC–ESI-MS) in...