Anais do Simpósio Latino Americano de Ciências de Alimentos
Anais do 14 SLACA - Simpósio Latino Americano de Ciência de Alimentos

Due to the importance of phytotherapy, the World Health Organization (WHO) emphasizes the need to ensure the quality of these products through modern, controlled, and standardized techniques. For example, propolis is a source of bioactive compounds with more than 500 already identified, varying depending on the local production's physicochemical characteristics or handling practices. Therefore, the Ministry of Agriculture and Supply sets standards to establish the identity and quality of propolis extracts marketed nationally. Given the importance of controlling the quality of propolis products, this work aimed to carry out the quality control of commercials propolis (green and brown). Seventeen commercial propolis extracts and extracts produced in the laboratory, using ethanol (100, 70, 50% v/v) or water, were judiciously analyzed. The extracts were characterized by chromatographic techniques (UPLC-PDA-MS/MS), total solids, oxidation time, and antioxidant capacity (ORAC). The results were compared with the legislation reference values. The UPLC-PDA-MS/MS analyzes showed that sixteen samples had a chromatographic profile equivalent to the extracts obtained in this study but with extreme variations in terms of concentration. In addition, a possible falsification was detected in one of the brands since no propolis chemical marker was identified. Regarding the oxidation index and ORAC, products marketed as capsules, which are usually more expensive, present results below the legislation's recommended, not being acceptable for commercialization. Therefore, this study showed that not all of the seventeen samples meet the necessary standard for commercialization, signaling a warning to consumers, as these products are traditionally used to treat several inflammatory diseases, but they do not always have the minimum acceptable standard for commercialization.