Polyvinyl alcohol nanoparticles loaded with propolis extract: Fabrication, characterization and antimicrobial activity

Background and Purpose Propolis has high potential beneficial bioactive properties such as anti-oxidative, antimicrobial, and anti-tumour activities. However, the bitter taste and the insolubility nature of propolis in water lead to some limitations in their usage in functional food applications. Experimental Approach Herein, we evaluated the effects of nanoencapsulation of propolis at the different concentration levels (0, 0.4, 0.8, 1.0, and 1.2 %) into the polyvinyl alcohol (PVA) nanoparticles using the electrospraying method, on the structural, physical, antioxidant, antimicrobial and thermal properties. Key Results The results revealed that the fabricated nanocapsules (PVA-NPs) obtained under optimal conditions had uniform size distribution and unstable particles with small particle size between 104-258 nm, a polydispersity index