Propolis Science

02/13/2026

Courtesy of The Micro Universe
https://www.facebook.com/reel/1377682123649957

02/10/2026

02/01/2026

Honeybees think water meters are cool.

02/01/2026

Take a deep breath and enjoy this video of a curious little bee inside of a dandelion pollinating.
By Flow Hive

02/01/2026

01/06/2026

This study explored how propolis affects weight gain and metabolic health in rats fed a high-fat diet. The researchers found that propolis helped reduce weight gain, fatty liver buildup, unhealthy cholesterol levels, and liver damage without reducing how much the animals ate. Instead of working by appetite suppression, propolis improved metabolism by influencing communication between the gut, hormones released from the gut, and the liver. It strengthened the intestinal barrier, increased beneficial gut bacteria that produce short-chain fatty acids like butyrate and propionate, and shifted gut hormone signaling in a healthier direction. These changes activated a key energy-regulating system in the liver called AMPK, which helps the body burn fat and reduce fat production. The study highlights a newly identified pathway in which propolis improves metabolic health by coordinating gut microbes, gut hormones, and liver energy regulation. While these results are promising, the findings were observed in rats, and further studies are needed to determine how well these effects translate to humans.

Objectives: Emerging evidence suggests that propolis possesses significant anti-obesity properties. While gut hormones and microbiota are known to play crucial roles in obesity development, the specific mechanisms through which propolis exerts its effects via the gut hormone axis remain...

01/06/2026

Caffeic acid phenethyl ester (CAPE), a chemical found naturally in propolis, is the sticky resin bees make to protect their hives. CAPE has been looked at by many researchers because it can reduce inflammation and calm immune-related responses in the body. In experiments like this one, scientists often give CAPE to cells or animals that have been exposed to substances or conditions that cause pain, nerve sensitization, or excessive immune activity. They then measure changes in pain behavior, swelling, and levels of inflammatory signaling molecules. Across similar studies, CAPE is shown to lower the activation of inflammatory pathways, especially ones involving NF-κB and MAPK, which are chains of chemical signals that normally tell cells to make more inflammatory chemicals. When CAPE slows down those signals, tissues show less swelling, reduced pain sensitivity, and fewer immune-driven chemical messengers being made. By acting as an antioxidant and reducing oxidative stress, CAPE also helps protect cells from the kind of damage that makes inflammation worse. The paper likely concludes that CAPE shows promise as a natural anti-inflammatory and pain-reducing agent in laboratory models, and that its effects on key cellular pathways help explain how it works.
https://www.sciencedirect.com/science/article/abs/pii/S1094715925008414

01/06/2026

This study looked at whether a natural compound called caffeic acid phenethyl ester (CAPE), which comes from propolis produced by bees, can reduce neuropathic pain in mice and how it might work. Neuropathic pain happens when nerves are damaged and the nervous system becomes overly sensitive, which is hard to treat with current medicines. The researchers used a mouse model where a nerve in the leg was gently injured to mimic chronic nerve pain and then gave CAPE to the mice. They found that the mice treated with CAPE showed less pain behavior than the untreated mice. The scientists also examined cells in the spinal cord called microglia, which are immune cells that can become activated after nerve injury and release inflammatory signals that make pain worse. CAPE reduced the activation of these microglia and lowered levels of several inflammatory signaling proteins, including TNF-α, IL-1β and IL-6. The study showed that CAPE works by blocking a chain of molecular signals known as the p38 MAPK and NF-κB pathways, which normally drive inflammation and pain. The results suggest that CAPE might be a promising and relatively safe candidate for treating neuropathic pain by calming immune activity in the spinal cord and reducing inflammation, though more research would be needed to see if it works the same way in humans.

Management of neuropathic pain is still a clinical challenge. Evidence has accumulated indicating that propolis is effective in attenuating neuropathic pain; however, the mechanism is not fully understood. Our present study investigated the effects ...