The effects of propolis on antibody production by laying hens

Abstract

Propolis is a honeybee product showing several biological properties that enhance the immune response, depending on the concentration and intake period. Because propolis possesses an immunomodulatory action on mammals, the objective of our study was to investigate the effects of propolis on the humoral immune response of laying hens by evaluating antibody production. Laying hens (ISA Brown) were divided into 5 groups with 7 birds each. Group 1 was a nonimmunized control, whereas birds in group 2 were immunized intravenously with SRBC, and those in groups 3, 4, and 5 were treated intraperitoneally with propolis (2, 10, and 50 mg/kg, respectively) on 3 consecutive days and then inoculated intravenously with SRBC. Hematological and serological analyses were carried out on d 0, 3, and 38. Natural and specific antibody levels were determined by hemagglutination with rabbit red blood cells and SRBC, respectively. Propolis-treated birds (50 mg/kg) showed a significant decline in heterophils and in the heterophil:lymphocyte ratio. After SRBC immunization, significant increases in levels of IgG were observed in groups 4 and 5. Furthermore, higher levels of natural antibodies were observed in propolis-treated laying hens. The administration of propolis to laying hens increased the production of IgG specific to SRBC and natural antibodies, and could be used to increase antigen-specific antibody responses to vaccines.

Effect of dietary supplementation with an ethanolic extract of propolis on broiler intestinal morphology and digestive enzyme activity

“…Due to the presence of these important compounds and their effects on animal physiology, the use of propolis in broiler feed, whether in the form of crude propolis or an ethanolic extract of propolis (EEP), promotes improved gut health by controlling the growth of pathogenic micro‐organisms in the gastrointestinal tract, which consequently improves digestive and absorptive functions. Additional advantages derive from the use of propolis in poultry diets, such as the absence in carcasses of toxic residues that might compromise human health (Denli et al., ) and improvements in the immune system (Freitas et al., ) and in the performance of laying hens and broilers (Shalmany and Shivazad, ; Tatli Seven et al., ; Çetin et al., ; Tekeli et al., ).…”

Propolis residue inclusion in the diet affects digestive enzyme activity in broiler chickens

“…Propolis has important biological properties such as antioxidant (COTTICA et al, 2011), immunomodulatory (FREITAS et al, 2011;YUAN et al, 2012), anti-inflammatory (HORI et al, 2013), antiviral (SCHNITZLER et al, 2009) and antibacterial (FALCÃO et al, 2014) which are mainly attributed to its flavonoids and polyphenols. These compounds are extracted from propolis for use in human medicine where solvents are employed, typically grain alcohol, in order to obtain its ethanol extract.…”

Intestinal morphology and activity of digestive enzymes in broilers fed crude propolis

“…The properties of propolis are widely known and include antioxidant (Cottica et al 2011), immunomodulatory (Freitas et al 2011;Yuan et al 2012), anti-inflammatory (Hori et al 2013), antiviral (Kujumgiev et al 1999) and antibacterial activities (Grange and Davey 1990). These biologicalproperties are attributed to its chemical composition, which consists of polyphenols, flavonoids, phenolic acids, aromatic aldehydes, esters, amino acids, minerals and vitamins (Bankova et al 2000;Schnitzler et al 2010).…”

“…The majority of the studies on the effects of propolis extract in poultry feeding have examined its effects on animal immunity (Ziaran et al 2005;Ç etin et al 2010;Freitas et al 2011;Yuan et al 2012). However, it has been suggested that propolis can influence other physiological processes, such as the antioxidant systems of broilers chickens, increasing performance under heat stress (Seven et al 2010), relaxing muscles in the trachea of guinea pig by activating potassium channels (Paulino et al 2002) and increasing the contraction tension of the ileum in mice (Kakino et al 2012), among others.…”