The action of cinnamic acid isolated from propolis on receptors expression, cytokines production and fungicidal activity of human monocytes

• Grant number: 12/00923-9
• Support Opportunities: Scholarships abroad - Research Internship - Master's degree
• Start date: April 01, 2012
• End date: April 30, 2012
• Field of knowledge: Biological Sciences - Pharmacology - Ethnopharmacology
• Principal Investigator: José Maurício Sforcin
• Grantee: Bruno Jose Conti
• Supervisor: Vassya Stefanova Bankova
• Host Institution: Instituto de Biociências (IBB). Universidade Estadual Paulista (UNESP). Campus de Botucatu. Botucatu , SP, Brazil
• Institution abroad: Bulgarian Academy of Sciences (BAS), Bulgaria
• Associated to the scholarship: 10/13279-5 - The action of cinnamic acid isolated from propolis on receptors expression, cytokines production and fungicidal activity of human monocytes, BP.MS

Abstract

Propolis, a resinous product made by honeybees from exudates collected from different parts of the plants, has shown plenty of therapeutic properties, such as immunomodulatory, antimicrobial, anti-inflammatory, antioxidant, among others. The chemical complexity of propolis is a consequence of the local flora used as a vegetal source for its production, making it difficult to identify the substances responsible for its therapeutic activities. Cinnamic acid and its derivatives contribute significantly to the biological effects of propolis. Herein, human monocytes were obtained from healthy donors and incubated with cinnamic acid to verify a possible cytotoxic effect. Its action on cell surface markers (Toll-like receptors, MHC-II, CD80) and on pro-and anti-inflammatory (TNF-a and IL-10) cytokines were also evaluated, and these parameters were correlated to the fungicidal activity of monocytes. All these assays were practically done, and now we would like to characterize the chemical constituents of propolis collected in the apiary of the University, focusing phenolic compounds and cinnamic acid, using gas chromatography associated to spectrometry (GC-MS). This methodology will contribute to a better understanding of the chemical aspects of this project. (AU)