Ultrastructural investigation of the protective effects of propolis on bleomycin induced pulmonary fibrosis.

We investigated the antioxidant and anti-inflammatory effects of propolis on bleomycin induced lung fibrosis and compared these effects to prednisolone treatment. Forty rats were divided into four groups of ten: group 1 was treated with intratracheal infusion of 0.2 ml physiological saline followed by daily treatment with 0.5 ml physiological saline for 20 days. In the remaining groups (groups 2 - 4), 5 mg/kg bleomycin was given via the trachea. Rats in group 2 were given 0.5 ml physiological saline. Rats in group 3 were treated with 100 mg/kg propolis, and 10 mg/kg prednisolone was given to rats in group 4. The treatments for all groups were continued for 20 days. On postoperative day 21, blood and lung samples were taken for biochemistry, histopathology and electron microscopy evaluation. We compared oxidative stress parameters and found lower malondialdehyde and myeloperoxidase levels, and higher total sulfhydryl levels and catalase activities for the bleomycin + propolis group than for the bleomycin and bleomycin + prednisolone groups. The highest mean fibrosis score was detected in the bleomycin group. Although the mean fibrosis scores of the bleomycin + propolis and bleomycin + prednisolone groups were not significantly different, electron microscopy revealed that propolis diminished bleomycin induced lung fibrosis more effectively than prednisolone. The effects of propolis might be due to its potent antioxidant and anti-inflammatory properties.

Effects of Manisa propolis on telomerase activity in leukemia cells obtained from the bone marrow of leukemia patients.

Propolis is a resinous material collected by honeybees and obtained from beehives that has anticancer effects by inducing apoptosis. The aim of this study is to investigate the effect of propolis on human telomerase reverse transcriptase (hTERT) in the leukemia cells obtained from leukemia patients. Four different bone marrow cell cultures from each of four leukemia cases were prepared. The 60 ng/ml, 30 ng/ml and 15 ng/ml working concentrations of propolis were administered to three cultures of each patient, while one culture contained only culture medium. hTERT mRNA expression levels of cells were detected at 24 h, 48 h and 72 h using the LightCycler 2.0 instrument. A significant decrease in hTERT expression levels was observed in the 60 ng/ml concentration of propolis. In conclusion, Manisa propolis may also have a potential effect on the expression of hTERT in leukemia-particularly owing to its constituent chrysin.

Bee and bee products allergy in Turkish beekeepers: determination of risk factors for systemic reactions.

BACKGROUND: The prevalence of allergic reactions due to bee stings in beekeepers varies in different regions of the world. The aim of this study was to evaluate the characteristics of sting reactions and the risk factors for developing systemic reactions in Turkish beekeepers. METHODS: A self-administered questionnaire was distributed to 1250 beekeepers to be completed in seven different cities of Turkey. A total of 494 (39.6 %) questionnaires were returned. RESULTS: There were 444 subjects (89.9 %) with a history of sting exposure in the previous 12 months. Systemic reactions were present in 29 subjects (6.5 %) and nine (2 %) reactions were anaphylactic. Fifty-five percent of beekeepers reported more than 100 bee stings in the previous year. When systemic reactions were controlled by age and duration of beekeeping in a logistic regression model, seasonal rhinitis (OR: 4.4, 95 % CI: 1.2-11.5), perennial rhinitis (OR: 4.6, 95 % CI: 1.2-18.2), food allergy (OR:7.0, 95 % CI: 2.0-25.0), physician-diagnosed asthma (OR: 8.0, 95 % CI: 2.5-25.6), having an atopic disease of any type (OR: 3.3, 95 % CI: 1.2-8.7) and having two or more atopic diseases (OR: 10.9, 95 % CI: 3.5-33.8) were significantly associated with systemic reactions due to bee sting in the previous 12 months. CONCLUSION: The incidence of systemic reactions in Turkish beekeepers is low, which might be due to the protective effect of a high frequency of bee stings. The risk of systemic reactions increases approximately three-fold when one atopic disease is present and eleven-fold when two or more concurrent atopic diseases are present with respect to no atopic disease.

Bee and bee products allergy in Turkish beekeepers: determination of risk factors for systemic reactions / Alergia a la abeja y a los productos de la abeja en apicultores turcos: determinación de los factores de riesgo de reacciones sitémicas

Background: The prevalence of allergic reactions due to bee stings in beekeepers varies in different regions of the world. The aim of this study was to evaluate the characteristics of sting reactions and the risk factors for developing systemic reactions in Turkish beekeepers. Methods: A self-administered questionnaire was distributed to 1250 beekeepers to be completed in seven different cities of Turkey. A total of 494 (39.6 %) questionnaires were returned. Results: There were 444 subjects (89.9 %) with a history of sting exposure in the previous 12 months. Systemic reactions were present in 29 subjects (6.5 %) and nine (2 %) reactions were anaphylactic. Fifty-five percent of beekeepers reported more than 100 bee stings in the previous year. When systemic reactions were controlled by age and duration of beekeeping in a logistic regression model, seasonal rhinitis (OR: 4.4, 95 % CI: 1.2-11.5), perennial rhinitis (OR: 4.6, 95 % CI: 1.2-18.2), food allergy (OR:7.0, 95 % CI: 2.0-25.0), physician-diagnosed asthma (OR: 8.0, 95 % CI: 2.5-25.6), having an atopic disease of any type (OR: 3.3, 95 % CI: 1.2-8.7) and having two or more atopic diseases (OR: 10.9, 95 % CI: 3.5-33.8) were significantly associated with systemic reactions due to bee sting in the previous 12 months. Conclusion: The incidence of systemic reactions in Turkish beekeepers is low, which might be due to the protective effect of a high frequency of bee stings. The risk of systemic reactions increases approximately three-fold when one atopic disease is present and eleven-fold when two or more concurrent atopic diseases are present with respect to no atopic disease

Antecedentes: la prevalencia de las reacciones alérgicas por la picadura de abejas en los apicultores varia en las diferentes regiones del mundo. Este estudio está encaminado a evaluar las características de las reacciones a la picadura y los factores de riesgo para que tengan lugar reacciones sistémicas en los apicultores turcos. Métodos: Se envió un cuestionario a 1.250 apicultores de siete ciudades diferentes de Turquía, para que lo retornarán tras cumplimentarlo, lo que hicieron 494 (39,6%) de ellos. Resultados: En los 12 últimos meses, 444 (89,9%) de los apicultores habían sufrido picaduras. 29 (6,5%) habían tenido reacciones sistémicas, 9 de ellas (2%) reacciones anafilácticas. El 55% de los apicultores habían sido sufrido más de 100 picaduras en el último año. Cuando las reacciones sistémicas se controlaron en función de la edad y la duración de la apicultura en un modelo de regresión logística, la rinitis estacional (OR: 4.4, 95% CI:1.2-11.5), rinitis perenne (OR: 4.6, 95% CI:1.2-18.2), alergia alimentaria (OR: 7.0, 95% CI:2.0-25.0), asma diagnosticada por el médico (OR: 8.0, 95% CI: 2.5-25.6), tener una enfermedad atópica (OR: 3.3, 95% CI: 1.2-8.7), y tener dos o más enfermedades atópicas (OR: 10.9, 95% CI: 3.5-33.8), estaban asociadas significativamente con reacciones sistémicas causadas por picadura de abeja en al menos los últimos 12 meses. Conclusión: la incidencia de reacciones sistémicas en los apicultores turcos es baja, lo que puede deberse al efecto protector de la alta frecuencia de picaduras de abeja. El riesgo de reacciones sistémicas aumenta aproximadamente tres veces cuando el apicultor ya padece una enfermedad atópica y once veces cuando concurren dos o más enfermedades atópicas, en comparación con los apicultores que no padecen enfermedades de esta naturaleza

Determination of chemical composition of Turkish propolis.

The aim of the present work is to study the chemical composition of Turkish propolis. Propolis samples were collected from different regions of Turkey (Bursa, Erzurum-Askale, Gumushane-Sogutagil and Trabzon-Caglayan) in 1999. Ethanol extracts of propolis (EEP) were prepared for chemical analysis, using gas chromatograph coupled with mass spectrometry (GC-MS). Our findings show that propolis samples from Trabzon and Gumushane region have a similar chemical composition. In both samples aromatic acids, aliphatic acids and their esters, and also ketone derivatives are the main compound groups. The chemical composition of the single sample that was collected from Erzurum region shows a very different pattern than the other two samples. In this propolis, the main compounds are aromatic acid esters and alcohols. However, it contains a high amount of amino acids compared to the other samples. The other samples collected from three different region of Bursa City are rich with flavavones, aromatic acids and their esters, terpenoids, flavones and ketones.

Propolis from the Mediterranean region: chemical composition and antimicrobial activity.

The chemical composition of propolis from Bulgaria, Turkey, Greece and Algeria was investigated by GC-MS. All of them contained mainly flavonoids and esters of caffeic and ferulic acids, which indicated that their main source are buds of poplars of the taxonomic section Aegieros. Some Turkish samples contained a low percent of diterpenic acids, while in Algerian samples significant amounts of a hydroxyditerpenic acid (M=322, its structure not determined by its MS) were found. All samples showed significant antibacterial and weak to moderate antifungal activity.