IRANIAN PROPOLIS ETHANOL EXTRACT AGAINST STAPHYLOCOCCUS AUREUS INFECTION IN WOUND MICE MODEL

Abstract

Propolis as a honeybee's product is famous for its biological and pharmacological effects. The subject of this study was to evaluate the antimicrobial effects of the Iranian propolis ethanol extract against different kinds of microorganisms by disc diffusion method and microbroth dilution assay. Due to the high antimicrobial effect of propolis extract, the efficacy of topical propolis cream was compared with mupirocin against Staphylococcus aureus wound infection model in mice.
The in-vitro antimicrobial evaluations showed the more sensitivity of Gram positive bacteria to propolis ethanol extract, followed by yeast. In wound infection model, propolis cream significantly reduced the log CFU of S.aureus,compared to placebo cream (p<0.05), but its efficacy was lower than that of mupiricin ointment (p<0.05).
Although, propolis showed the acceptable antibacterial effects against S. aureus in vitro condition, but its efficacy against S. aureus infection was lower than that of mupirocin ointment in wound infection model. Therefore, propolis can be used as an alternative antiseptic for preventive purposes.