Boswellia ovalifoliolata (Burseraceae) essential oil as an eco-friendly larvicide? Toxicity against six mosquito vectors of public health importance, non-target mosquito fishes, backswimmers, and water bugs.
The use of synthetic pesticides to control vector populations is detrimental to human health and the environment and may lead to the development of resistant strains. Plants can be alternative sources of safer compounds effective on mosquito vectors. In this study, the mosquito larvicidal activity of Boswellia ovalifoliolata leaf essential oil (EO) was evaluated against Anopheles stephensi, Anopheles subpictus, Aedes aegypti, Aedes albopictus, Culex quinquefasciatus, and Culex tritaeniorhynchus. GC-MS revealed that the B. ovalifoliolata EO contained at least 20 compounds. The main constituents were β-pinene, α-terpineol, and caryophyllene. In acute toxicity assays, the EO was toxic to larvae of An. stephensi, Ae. aegypti, Cx. quinquefasciatus, An. subpictus, Ae. albopictus, and Cx. tritaeniorhynchus with LC50values of 61.84, 66.24, 72.47, 82.26, 89.80, and 97.95 μg/ml, respectively. B. ovalifoliolata EO was scarcely toxic to mosquito fishes, backswimmers, and water bugs predating mosquito larvae with LC50from 4186 to 14,783 μg/ml. Overall, these results contribute to develop effective and affordable instruments to magnify the reliability of Culicidae control programs.
Department of Agriculture, Food and Environment, University of Pisa, via del Borghetto 80, 56124, Pisa, Italy. benelli.giovanni@gmail.com.
Giovanni
G
Benelli
Unit of Vector Control, Phytochemistry and Nanotechnology, Department of Zoology, Annamalai University, Annamalainagar, Tamil Nadu, 608 002, India.
Mohan
M
Rajeswary
Unit of Vector Control, Phytochemistry and Nanotechnology, Department of Zoology, Annamalai University, Annamalainagar, Tamil Nadu, 608 002, India.
Periasamy
P
Vijayan
Unit of Vector Control, Phytochemistry and Nanotechnology, Department of Zoology, Annamalai University, Annamalainagar, Tamil Nadu, 608 002, India.
Sengamalai
S
Senthilmurugan
Department of Botany and Microbiology, College of Science, King Saud University, Riyadh, 11451, Saudi Arabia.
Naiyf S
NS
Alharbi
Department of Botany and Microbiology, College of Science, King Saud University, Riyadh, 11451, Saudi Arabia.
Shine
S
Kadaikunnan
Department of Botany and Microbiology, College of Science, King Saud University, Riyadh, 11451, Saudi Arabia.
Jamal M
JM
Khaled
Unit of Vector Control, Phytochemistry and Nanotechnology, Department of Zoology, Annamalai University, Annamalainagar, Tamil Nadu, 608 002, India. drgovind1979@gmail.com.
Marimuthu
M
Govindarajan
D000330:Aedes / Q000187:drug effects* / Q000254:growth & development; D000818:Animals; D000852:Anopheles / Q000187:drug effects* / Q000254:growth & development; D000081008:Bicyclic Monoterpenes; D029743:Boswellia / Q000737:chemistry*; D001643:Bridged Bicyclo Compounds / Q000737:chemistry*; D029403:Burseraceae / Q000737:chemistry*; D003465:Culex / Q000187:drug effects* / Q000254:growth & development; D000081005:Cyclohexane Monoterpenes; D053138:Cyclohexenes / Q000737:chemistry*; D003532:Cyprinodontiformes; D006801:Humans; D007814:Larva / Q000254:growth & development*; D039821:Monoterpenes / Q000737:chemistry*; D000072138:Mosquito Vectors / Q000187:drug effects*; D009822:Oils, Volatile; D018515:Plant Leaves; D000081223:Polycyclic Sesquiterpenes; D011634:Public Health; D015203:Reproducibility of Results; D012717:Sesquiterpenes / Q000737:chemistry*
D000081008:Bicyclic Monoterpenes; D001643:Bridged Bicyclo Compounds; D000081005:Cyclohexane Monoterpenes; D053138:Cyclohexenes; D039821:Monoterpenes; D009822:Oils, Volatile; D000081223:Polycyclic Sesquiterpenes; D012717:Sesquiterpenes; C016775:alpha-terpineol; C010789:beta-pinene; C024714:caryophyllene
Dengue fever; Filariasis; Japanese encephalitis; Malaria; Yellow fever; Zika virus