Physical, chemical and antimicrobial implications of the association of propolis with a natural rubber latex membrane

Abstract

Natural rubber latex (NRL) has shown interesting biomedical properties, such as wound healing improvement, tissue regeneration stimulation and angiogenesis. Propolis, produced by honey bees, acts as an antiseptic agent in beehives. It has been used in ethnopharmacology as an antimicrobial and cicatrizant agent over centuries. The aim of this study was to incorporate propolis into an NRL membrane whilst keeping the antibiotic properties of the former against microorganisms often associated with wound healing delay and the chemical and physical characteristics of the latter. This work has shown that the interactions between the NRL and the propolis constituents were not due to chemical bonding. The propolis-NRL membrane constituents in simulated body fluid were released gradually, reaching 37% release in 144 h. The concentration of released material of 400 μg/mL was able to inhibit 80% of the growth of C. albicans. The incorporation of propolis extract into a NRL membrane while keeping the desirable characteristics of both has been demonstrated to be feasible. Therefore, this association might be used as an auxiliary in wound healing processes.