Unlocking the Potential of Bee-Derived Bioactives: From Composition to Optimized Encapsulation

Royal jelly and propolis are bee-derived natural products containing bioactive compounds with potential applications in pharmaceutical and nutraceutical formulations. In the BEE-TECH project, propolis, and royal jelly will first be characterized in terms of moisture, ash, total protein, and fat contents to obtain information on their composition. Moisture will be determined using the vacuum drying method, while ash, protein, and fat contents will be evaluated according to AOAC 920.153, AOAC 960.52, and AOAC 991.36, respectively. This compositional information, together with information reported in the literature, will be used to guide the selection of suitable encapsulation techniques and conditions for royal jelly and propolis. Different encapsulation techniques, including spray drying, fluid-bed drying, freeze drying, and liposome-based encapsulation, will be investigated for the protection and stabilization of their bioactive compounds. Spray drying will be mainly evaluated due to its flexibility, relatively low cost, and ability to produce stable particles. Natural polysaccharides, including gum arabic and maltodextrin, will be used as wall materials, individually and in combination, at different concentrations. Feed temperature, feed flow rate, and core-to-wall material ratio will be studied and optimized. In addition, liposomal encapsulation using lecithin and chitosan will be investigated. The resulting formulations will be evaluated in terms of encapsulation efficiency and structural uniformity. The combined compositional, literature, and formulation data will support the development of optimized encapsulation protocols for royal jelly and propolis, focusing on stable and uniform structures with high encapsulation efficiency.