Studies on the Efficacies of Water Extract of Propolis

프로폴리스 물추출물의 약효연구

Propolis is a lipophilic, natural product prepared by mixing the exudates collected from various plants by honeybees with beeswax for the purpose of using to seal hive walls and to strengthen the borders of combs. Because of its versatile bioactivities, propolis has been attracting many investigators'interest. But the pharmacological studies on propolis has, to date, been exclusively performed for an alcohol extract, there is few information of water extract. Therefore, in this study, we investigated the various effects of water extract of Chinese propolis. The water extract of propolis and its fractions of organic solvents showed strong antioxidative activities, especially ether and ethylacetate fractions, and reduced the lipid peroxidation of rat liver in viro. Additionally the ether fraction of propolis (10 mg/ml) inhibited the activity of hyaluronidase by 50%. In vivo, the water extract of propolis considerably decreased s-GOT, s-GPT and s-LDH activities which represent for the hepatotoxicity induced by $CCl_4$ in rats, and prolonged the MST (Medium revival tinge) and ILS (Increasing in MST over control) by 18% in mice which inoculated with sarcoma 180 ascites cells. These results suggest that the water extract of propolis has various bioactivities as well as the alcohol extract.