TECHNOLOGICAL PROSPECTION OF PROPOLIS AND ITS APPLICATIONS IN THE INTERNATIONAL SCENARIO IN THE LAST 20 YEARS

Abstract

For thousands of years, propolis has been used in folk medicine and, in recurrent studies, it has been showing progressively more applications. Considering the attention that the patent system has received in recent decades, instigating technological innovation by companies and research institutions, the survey of data on patent filings involving propolis becomes substantial. This prospective study evaluated quantitative aspects of patent filing registered in international and national databases between 2000 and 2020. In the last decade, with a peak in 2012, there was an increase in the number of patent applications. Most records are from Asia, especially China, South Korea, and Japan, with 1845, 584, and 222 records, respectively. With 98 patent filings, Brazil ranks fourth, with 48% linked to universities, while 12% are involved with companies. Regarding the applicability of propolis, the most frequent ones are for medical, dental and hygienic purposes (1504 patents), followed by the food or non-alcoholic beverages and preservatives sector (964). Taken together, the results of this study show the extensive worldwide interest of industry and academia in the benefits of propolis.