The Rural Development Administration said on the 18th that it had confirmed study results showing that a propolis extract is effective in easing excessive immune responses. It said it scientifically proved the potential to improve hypersensitive immune reactions such as atopic dermatitis.
Propolis is a natural substance that honeybees gather from new plant shoots or tree resin. It is known to have antioxidant, antibacterial, and anti-inflammatory effects. Under the current health functional food standards, only antioxidant and oral antibacterial effects are recognized as functional.
The Rural Development Administration, together with Seoul National University of Science and Technology, Yonsei University, Gachon University, and Bundang CHA Hospital, verified the immune-modulating effect of propolis through step-by-step experiments.
According to the Rural Development Administration, big data analysis showed that 12 major components in propolis are involved in 203 biological processes related to atopic dermatitis. In particular, links were identified with key genes that trigger hypersensitive immune responses.
In cell experiments, five items were compared: hypersensitive immune response, immune enhancement, and joint, gum, and gut health. Among these, the effect of regulating hypersensitive immune responses was the most pronounced.
The effect was also confirmed in animal experiments. When propolis extract was administered for four weeks to mice induced with atopic dermatitis, skin symptoms were reduced by about half. The number of scratches also fell from an average of 28 to 15. Transepidermal water loss and ear thickness likewise decreased by about 50%, easing inflammation and itching.
A human trial was also conducted. Sixty-six children and adults consumed 2.5 ml of propolis extract per day for 12 weeks. As a result, expression of genes related to hypersensitive immune responses decreased by about 50%. Levels of serum eosinophil cationic protein (ECP), an inflammation marker, also fell by 12%.
However, the Rural Development Administration noted, "This improvement in figures cannot be immediately described as 'atopic symptoms were reduced by half,'" adding, "It means that we secured scientific evidence for recognizing functionality."
In the immune mechanism study, propolis extract was found to act directly on immune cells to reduce the secretion of substances that cause inflammation. In other words, rather than unconditionally boosting immunity, it serves to calm excessive responses.
Based on this study, the Rural Development Administration is proceeding with the Ministery of Food and Drug Safety to add "mitigation of hypersensitive immune responses" to the functional items of propolis extract. The target timeline is the first half of next year.
Bang Hye-seon, head of the Agricultural Biology Department at the National Institute of Agricultural Sciences under the Rural Development Administration, said, "Propolis is meaningful not for indiscriminately raising immunity, but for helping to calm overly reactive immunity," adding, "If functionality is added, the scope of use as a health functional food will expand and it could help farm income. Commercialization could be possible as early as the second half of next year."