Effect of water extract of Turkish propolis on tuberculosis infection in guinea-pigs

Mycobacterium tuberculosis (H 37R v)-infected guinea-pig model was used to investigate the effect of water extract of propolis (WEP). After subcutaneous inoculation of tubercle bacilli, each animal received oral WEP ( n=9), isoniazid ( n=5) or saline ( n=6) as placebo and were sacrificed 30 days later. Formation of necrosis was less prominent in the group treated with WEP, but was not statistically significant ( P>0.05). The granuloma formation in the same group was more prominent than the placebo and isoniazid groups; however, this finding failed to reach statistical significance by the Kruskal–Wallis test ( P>0.05). These findings suggest that Turkish WEP may have a limited effect on the development of tuberculosis infection in this guinea-pig model.