Growth Biocontrol of Foodborne Pathogens and Spoilage Microorganisms of Food by Polish Propolis Extracts

Abstract

Propolis is a natural mixture produced by bees from plant resin substances. This study focuses on the general characteristics of five samples of Polish extract propolis originating from agricultural areas. Chemical composition with high performance liquid chromatography‒diode array detector method, total content of flavonoids and polyphenols, and antioxidative activity were determined in the ethanol extracts of propolis (EEP) samples. Minimum inhibitory concentration (MIC), minimum bactericidal/fungicidal concentration (MBC/MFC) and time-kill curves were studied for foodborne pathogens and food spoilage microorganisms. In EEPs the predominant flavonoid compounds were pinocembrin, chrysin, pinobanksin, apigenin, and kaempferol and the predominant phenolic acids were p-coumaric acid, ferulic acid, and caffeic acid. A strong antioxidative action of propolis in vitro was observed (IC50 for DPPH radical was at the level of 0.9–2.1 µg/mL). EEPs had MIC values for bacteria in the range of 1–16 mg/mL, whereas MIC for fungi ranged from 2 to 32 mg/mL. Extract of propolis originating from southern Poland was distinguished by higher content of bioactive components, and stronger antioxidative and antimicrobial activity than EPPs from the remaining areas of Poland. The results indicate the possibility of applying ethanol extracts from Polish propolis to protect food against microbiological spoilage.

Effect of the Solvent on Propolis Phenolic Profile and its Antifungal, Antioxidant, and In Vitro Cytoprotective Activity in Human Erythrocytes Under Oxidative Stress

“…Concentrations of galangin and chrysin in the propolis extracts (galangin: 15.08–23.91 mg/g of propolis extract and chrysin: 11.41–18.64 mg/g of propolis extract) were higher compared to samples from Greece (galangin: 0.02–2.53 mg/g of propolis extract and chrysin: 0.2–9.9 mg/g of propolis extract) and lower than in propolis collected from Bulgaria (galangin: 45.6 mg/g of propolis extract and chrysin: 66.3 mg/g of propolis extract) or Hungary (galangin: 44.2 mg/g of propolis extract and chrysin: 82.9 mg/g of propolis extract) [ 28 , 38 ]. The presence of phenolic acids ( Table 2 ) detected in the examined propolis extracts was previously reported in propolis samples by other authors [ 4 , 9 , 11 , 31 , 36 , 38 ]. The concentration of coumaric acid determined in all the propolis extracts (7.90–9.56 mg/g of propolis extract) was higher than in propolis extracts from Hungary (0.13–1.02 mg/g of propolis extract), Greece (0.04–1.15 mg/g of propolis extract), and Bulgaria (3.5 mg/g of propolis extract) and similar to the contents in propolis from Italy (6.51–11.01 mg/g of propolis extract) and the Wielkopolska Province in Poland (9.17–10.04 mg/g of propolis extract) [ 14 , 19 , 28 , 37 , 38 ].…”

“…The literature confirms the antifungal action of propolis from various geographical regions against pathogenic fungi in humans, as well as fungi responsible for plant diseases [ 4 , 5 , 7 , 31 , 36 , 56 , 57 , 58 ]. The propolis extracts were effective against many fungal stains, such as Aspergillus niger , Penicillium chrysogenum , Candida albicans , C. glabrata , Rhodotorula mucilaginosa , Fusarium solani , Botrytis cinera , P. notatum , and Saccharmyces cerevisiae [ 4 , 5 , 7 , 31 , 57 ]. The highest MIC value (7.5 mg/mL) of all the tested extracts was observed for A. niger , which was comparable to the MIC values previously reported for propolis extracts from Poland [ 31 , 35 ].…”

“…The propolis extracts were effective against many fungal stains, such as Aspergillus niger , Penicillium chrysogenum , Candida albicans , C. glabrata , Rhodotorula mucilaginosa , Fusarium solani , Botrytis cinera , P. notatum , and Saccharmyces cerevisiae [ 4 , 5 , 7 , 31 , 57 ]. The highest MIC value (7.5 mg/mL) of all the tested extracts was observed for A. niger , which was comparable to the MIC values previously reported for propolis extracts from Poland [ 31 , 35 ]. The results of the antifungal activity showed that the solvent used for the extraction of propolis affected the antifungal activity, which is consistent with the literature data [ 5 , 45 , 48 ].…”

“…Over the past few years, the biological activities of Polish propolis were studied intensively, and its chemopreventive, antioxidant, antibacterial, antiproliferative, and antifungal activity was observed [ 4 , 5 , 8 , 9 , 30 , 31 , 32 , 33 ]. Moreover, propolis collected from an apiary located in the central–western part of Poland effectively protected human red blood cells (RBC) in vitro against 2,2′-azobis(2-methylpropionamidine) dihydrochloride (AAPH)-induced oxidative hemolysis [ 19 , 34 ].…”

Aqueous and ethanolic extracts of propolis for the control of tyramine production by food-borne pathogens

“…Similarly, ethanolic propolis extracts were more effective than that of water extract on growth inhibition of L. monocytogenes in TDB (p<0.05). Ethanol extract of propolis exhibited strong antilisterial activity (Pobiega et al, 2019;Temiz et al, 2011). The antibacterial action of propolis is as a consequence of the direct action on the microorganism and encouragement of the immune sys-tem causing in initiation of natural defences of the organism (Sforcin and Bankova, 2011;Przybyłek and Karpiński, 2019).…”