Ralitza Chimshirova(1), Milena Popova(1), Amina Chakir(2), Violeta Valcheva(3), Simeon Dimitrov(3), Boryana Trusheva(1), Vassya Bankova(1)
1 - Institute of Organic Chemistry with Centre of Phytochemistry, Bulgarian Academy of Sciences, Sofia, Bulgaria.
2 - Laboratory of Applied Chemistry, Faculty of Sciences Semlalia, Cadi Ayyad University, Marrakech, Morocco.
3 - The Stephan Angeloff Institute of Microbiology, Bulgarian Academy of Sciences, Sofia, Bulgaria.
Propolis is widely used as a natural remedy, and as an active ingredient in various cosmetic, food and pharmaceutical preparations. However, its activity is due to various plant metabolites as its chemistry depends strongly on the vegetation around the beehives. The knowledge of the chemical composition of propolis from different geographical and climatic regions is of primary importance in respect to its pharmacological efficacy and safety use. In the current study, we report for the first time results on the detailed chemical analysis of propolis collected from semi-arid region of Morocco. The results revealed that the propolis displays specific chemical composition with triterpenoids and ingol diterpenes, a combination typical for the latex of Euphorbia spp., which has also never been proven as a source for propolis production. Fifteen compounds were isolated and characterized, incl. two new natural derivatives and seven newly isolated from propolis. Most of the compounds exhibited very good antimicrobial activity against different strains of bacteria and fungi. However, having in mind that the latex of Euphorbis spp is known to possesses skin irritating effect, further special attention should be paid in respect to the possibilities for application and safety use of this specific propolis type.
Acknowledgments: The work was supported by the Bulgarian Ministry of Education and Science under the National Research Programme “Young scientists and postdoctoral students” approved by DCM # 577/17.08.2018.
