Propolis propolis has approximately 50 constituents, primarily resins and vegetable balsams (50%), waxes (30%), essential oils (10%), and pollen (5%). Propolis also contains persistent lipophilic acaricides, a natural pesticide that deters mite infestations. In neotropical regions, in addition to a large variety of trees, bees may also gather resin from flowers in the genera "Clusia" and "Dalechampia", which are the only known plant genera that produce floral resins to attract pollinators. "Clusia" resin contains polyprenylated benzophenones. In some areas of Chile and Argentina Andean valleys, propolis contains viscidone, a terpene from "Baccharis" shrubs, and in Brazil and Paraguay, naphthoquinone epoxide has
Propolis the usual sources are more difficult to obtain. The properties of the propolis depend on the exact sources used by each individual hive; therefore any potential medicinal properties that may be present in one hive's propolis may be absent from another's, or from another sample in the same hive. Propolis has been used in traditional medicine. Propolis is "possibly effective" for treating cold sores, genital herpes, and post-surgery mouth pain, but there is "insufficient evidence" to rate the effectiveness of propolis in treating these or other conditions. Propolis is under preliminary research for the potential development of new drugs associated