Identification of chemical constituents and larvicidal activity of essential oil from Murraya exotica L. (Rutaceae) against Aedes aegypti, Anopheles stephensi and Culex quinquefasciatus (Diptera: Culicidae)

• Published in: Parasitology research (1987) Vol. 114; no. 5; pp. 1839 - 1845
• Main Authors: Krishnamoorthy, Shanmugam, Chandrasekaran, Manivachagam, Raj, Gnanaprakasam Adaikala, Jayaraman, Mahalingam, Venkatesalu, Venugopalan
• Format: Journal Article
• Language: English
• Published: Berlin/Heidelberg Springer-Verlag 01.05.2015; Springer Berlin Heidelberg
• Subjects: Aedes - drug effects; Aedes aegypti; Animals; Anopheles - drug effects; Anopheles stephensi; Benzoates - analysis; Benzoates - isolation & purification; benzyl benzoate; beta-caryophyllene; Biomedical and Life Sciences; Biomedicine; chemical composition; Culex - drug effects; Culex quinquefasciatus; essential oils; exposure duration; gas chromatography; Immunology; Insecticides - chemistry; Insecticides - isolation & purification; Insecticides - pharmacology; Larva - drug effects; larvae; leaves; lethal concentration 50; mass spectrometry; Medical Microbiology; Microbiology; Monoterpenes - analysis; Monoterpenes - isolation & purification; mortality; Murraya - chemistry; Murraya paniculata; Oils, Volatile - chemistry; Oils, Volatile - isolation & purification; Oils, Volatile - pharmacology; Original Paper; Plant Leaves - chemistry; Plant Oils - chemistry; Plant Oils - isolation & purification; Plant Oils - pharmacology; Sesquiterpenes - analysis; Sesquiterpenes - isolation & purification; Essential oil composition
• ISSN: 0932-0113; 1432-1955
• DOI: 10.1007/s00436-015-4370-x

This study was conducted to evaluate the phytochemical composition and larvicidal effect of leaf essential oil from Murraya exotica against early fourth-instar larvae of Aedes aegypti, Anopheles stephensi and Culex quinquefasciatus. Gas chromatography (GC) and gas chromatography mass spectrometry (GC-MS) analyses revealed that the essential oil contained 27 components. The major chemical components identified were β-humulene (40.62 %), benzyl benzoate (23.96 %), β-caryophyllene (7.05 %) and α-terpinene (5.66 %). The larval mortality was observed after 12 and 24 h of exposure period. The results revealed that essential oil showed varied levels of larvicidal activity against A. aegypti, A. stephensi and C. quinquefasciatus. After 12 h of exposure period, the larvicidal activities were LC₅₀ = 74.7 and LC₉₀ = 152.7 ppm (A. aegypti), LC₅₀ = 56.3 and LC₉₀ = 107.8 ppm (A. stephensi), and LC₅₀ = 74.4 and LC₉₀ = 136.9 ppm (C. quinquefasciatus) and the larvicidal activities after 24 h of exposure period were LC₅₀ = 35.8 and LC₉₀ = 85.4 ppm (A. aegypti), LC₅₀ = 31.3 and LC₉₀ = 75.1 ppm (A. stephensi), and LC₅₀ = 43.2 and LC₉₀ = 103.2 ppm (C. quinquefasciatus). These results suggest that leaf essential oil from M. exotica is a promising and eco-friendly source of natural larvicidal agent against A. aegypti, A. stephensi and C. quinquefasciatus.