Only recently, some other bioactivities have been reported for propolis volatiles.
Several biological activities, such as antibacterial [ 7, 8], antiviral [ 7, 9], antioxidant [ 10, 11], anti-inflammatory [ 12, 13], anticancer [ 14– 16], and antifungal [ 17, 18] properties, have been reported for propolis and as a result this resin is a highly valued bee product.
Biological activity has also been reported for the water extract of propolis (WEP), including neuroprotective [ 20], anti-influenza [ 21- 23], antioxidant [ 19], and anti-hyperglycemic [ 24] effects.
Phenolic contents between 6.4 and 15.2% (m/m) have been reported for ethanolic extracts of green Brazilian propolis [4, 21].
The methanol extracts of Nigeria bee propolis (600 mg/kg) has been reported for hepatocurative effect by ameliorating CCL4−induced alterations in the serum and liver AST, ALT and ALP activities when administered orally to rats for 10 days [132].
Antimicrobial and efflux pumps inhibiting activities of natural compounds have been reported for several natural based products such as rosemary, kaempferol, propolis and aqueous khat extracts [ 20- 23].
The inhibition of DNA synthesis was reported for Turkish propolis, which reflected its anti-tumor influence [ 30].
Antitumor action has been reported in vitro and in vivo for propolis extracts or its isolated compounds; however, Portuguese propolis has been little explored.
Indeed, variations in propolis formulation have been reported, related to the plants in the geographic region from which propolis has been collected [ 16].
Thus, the propolis of A. mellifera from Thailand, a floral biodiversity hotspot, is of interest since it has never been reported previously yet maybe different from the propolis of this species reported previously from other regions.
Complexity and variety of the chemical composition of propolis has been reported in the literature.
