Phytochemical screening and antibacterial potential of Peruvian propolis extract against Enterococcus faecalis: An in vitro study.

Abstract

Objectives: This study aimed to obtain a propolis alcoholic extract (PAE), analyze its phytochemical screening, and test its antibacterial activity against Enterococcus faecalis to demonstrate its potential usage in pulp treatments for primary teeth.

Materials and methods: PAE was obtained by maceration with absolute alcohol. The solubility assay and a phytochemical screening were performed. The phenolic compounds and flavonoids were quantified using spectrophotometry methods. The antibacterial activity of PAE was evaluated by determination of their minimal inhibitory concentration (MIC) and minimal bactericidal concentration (MBC) against E. faecalis. Two intracanal experimental propolis-based pastes were fabricated with propylene glycol and compared with the triple antibiotic paste (TAP) through the agar-well diffusion method against E. faecalis, and the results were analyzed by the Kruskal-Wallis test (a = 0.05).

Results: The solubility test showed that ethanol was the best solvent for PAE. The phytochemical screening indicates the presence of tannins, alkaloids, flavonoids, anthocyanidins, aldehydes, glycosides, ketones, triterpenoids, steroids, and catechins in PAE. The phenolic and flavonoid content was 49.8 ± 0.13 GAE mg/ml and 0.824 ± 0.03 QE mg/ml, respectively. The results showed that PAE has antibacterial activity against E. faecalis with MIC and MBC values of 60 mg/ml and 130 mg/ml, respectively. The agar well diffusion assay showed that the propolis-based paste has antibacterial activity. However, TAP exhibited superior antibacterial activity against E. faecalis.

Conclusion: PAE has phenolic and flavonoid content with antibacterial activity against E. faecalis. However, TAP exhibited higher antibacterial activity than PAE.