Pollen Diversity and Propolis’s Bioactive Compounds of Stingless Bees (Tetragonula laeviceps, Smith 1857) From Kedungpoh Meliponiculture, Gunungkidul, Yogyakarta.

Abstract

The progression of many diseases due to viruses and bacteria makes for an increase in natural alternative medicine. One source of natural medicine is honey and propolis of stingless bees. Efficacy physical and chemical properties of honey are influenced by the type of pollen and the environment, while geological factors influence the composition of propolis. Bee and stingless bee colonies have a behavior called feed preference. This preference is influenced by several aspects, such as food source location and the selected plant species that produce pollen, nectar, and resins. Therefore, this research was conducted to study the diversity of pollen and the composition of propolis bioactive compounds of stingless bees from Kedungpoh Meliponiculture in Gunungkidul, Yogyakarta. Identification of bees was carried out using a Digital Microscope Super eye . Pollen preparation was made using a modified acetolysis method and observed under a light microscope. The competition of bioactive compounds of propolis was investigated by GC-MS, Gas Chromatograph-Mass Spectrometry. The results showed the diversity of pollen of stingless bees ( T. laeviceps) from Kedungpoh Meliponiculture in Gunungkidul, Yogyakarta was from various plants belonging to 27 families consisting of herbs, shrubs, and trees. The dominated pollen family was from Arecaceae, 26,00 % of the total amounts of pollen. GC-MS result showed that the propolis was composed of 42 types o f t h e bioactive compound and grouped into four categories: terpenoid (62,50%), phenolic (29,22%), steroid (7.08%), fatty acid (1,20%). The most dominant bioactive compound was (Z)-3-(pentadec-8-en-1- yl) phenol (C 21 H 34 O) (23.32%) from the phenolic group.