Antimicrobial activity and formulation of propolis extracts

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Bees are sociable insects that leave and work in the hive. In order to be protected from outside enemies such as bacteria, fungi and other microorganisms they seal the hive with propolis that the bees have to produce themselves. Propolis has all the antimicrobial and antibacterial properties required in addition to its resinous character to be used as a sealing material. In addition, propolis serves as an antioxidant agent due to its reducing character properties that are utilised by the bee hive. At first this project will investigate the composition of propolis in order to understand its anti-microorganism character. At a second stage methods will be developed in order to extract the active ingredients paying particular attention in the retention of their biological activity. At a final stage, complex formulation designs and formulation routes for the fabrication of different types of particles will be investigated, in order to produce formulations which are tailored to deliver propolis and synergistic active agents with optimised activity in the food, cosmetics and pharmaceutical applications.