Chemical profiling of Dizygostemon riparius (Plantaginaceae) plant extracts and its application against larvae of Aedes aegypti L. (diptera: culicidae)

• Published in: Acta tropica Vol. 237; p. 106706
• Main Authors: Martins, Suzi Morais Aires, Cavalcante, Kiany Sirley Brandão, Teles, Rogério de Mesquita, Brandão, Clenilma Marques, Godinho, Allan Sampaio, Silva, Lanna Karinny, Holanda, Carlos Alexandre, da Rocha, Cláudia Quintino
• Format: Journal Article
• Language: English
• Published: Elsevier B.V 01.01.2023
• Subjects: Arbovirus; Dengue; Flavones; Larvicide; Secondary metabolites; Secondary metabolites; Flavones; Arbovirus; Larvicide; Dengue
• ISSN: 0001-706X; 1873-6254
• DOI: 10.1016/j.actatropica.2022.106706

•The amphipathic character of methanol promotes better interaction with saponins, phenolic derivatives — and to a lesser extent, steroids and fatty acids.•HPLC-UV-ESI-IT/MS analysis of Dizygostemon riparius crude leaf extracts returned 17 peaks (molecular ions) at 254 nm; 14 of which were identified as phenolic compounds.•Phytochemical analysis of the crude extracts revealed polymethoxyflavones as one of the main compound groups.•The polymethoxyflavones are widely found in plant extracts, and they seem to be the chemomarkers of Dizygostemon riparius. Dengue fever is a reemerging disease of global concern among health authorities due to its high rate of proliferation. In 2019, Brazil registered its second-highest dengue mortality rate since 1998, with approximately 754 deaths and 1.5 million probable cases. Brazilian Ministry of Health prevention and control strategies for Aedes include insecticides, eradication of breeding sites, and awareness campaigns. However, as new mosquito variants resistant to conventional insecticides emerge, there is an increasing demand for effective environment-friendly plant extracts and natural substances against adult mosquitos and/or larvae of Aedes aegypti L. with no negative impacts on human health. This study aimed to investigate the larvicidal activity of Dizygostemon riparius extracts and analyze its chemical profile for the first time. Dizygostemon is a Plantaginaceae bytipic genus and D. riparius is an aromatic plant recently identified in Maranhão, Brazil. The essential oil from its lilac morphotype already exhibited larvicidal potential against Aedes albopictus, but the still limited data on this new plant species require further chemical and biological studies on other species, such as Aedes aegypti. Ethyl acetate and methanol crude leaf extracts yielded, respectively, 17.60 and 25.96%. High-performance liquid chromatography (HPLC) with UV detection coupled with electrospray ionization mass spectrometry (HPLC-UV-ESI-IT/MS) analyses confirmed the presence of polymethoxyflavones and coumarins, such as isorhamnetin 3-galactoside-7-rhamnoside, 5,7-dihydroxy-3-(3-hydroxy-4,5-dimethoxyphenyl)-6-methoxy-4-benzopyrone and 3′,5-dihydroxy-4′,6,7-trimethoxyflavone. Ethyl acetate extract presented the best performance in larvicide bioassays (LC50 = 542.2 ± 11.5 µg.mL−1). Our results highlight the chemical and biological potential of this new species found in the cerrado of eastern Maranhão and open perspectives for future studies focusing on isolating and identifying other active secondary metabolites of Dizygostemon riparius. [Display omitted]