Efficacies of four plant essential oils as larvicide, pupicide and oviposition deterrent agents against dengue fever mosquito,Aedes aegypti Linn. (Diptera: Culicidae)

Objective: To evaluate larvicidal, pupicidal and oviposition deterrent activities of four plant essential oils from Alpinia galanga (L.) Willd rhizome, Anethum graveolens L. (An. graveolens)fruit, Foeniculum vulgare Mill. fruit, and Pimpinella anisum L. fruit against Aedes aegypti (Ae. aegypti). Methods: Four essential oils at 1％, 5％ and 10％ concentrations were assessed for insecticidal activity against larvae and pupae of Ae. aegypti, following the procedure of a dipping method assay. Oviposition deterrent activity of four essential oils was evaluated on gravid female of Ae. aegypti by a dual-choice oviposition bioassay. Results: The results revealed that An. graveolens oil provided the strongest larvicidal activity against Ae. aegypti among four tested plant essential oils with the highest mortality rate of 100％ and LC50 value of -0.3％. From the pupicidal experiment, An. graveolens also showed the highest toxicity against Ae. aegypti pupae with the highest mortality rate of 100％ at 72 h and LC50 value of 2.9％. In addition, 10％ An. graveolens had an oviposition deterrent effect against Ae. aegypti with effective repellency of 100％ and an oviposition activity index of –1.0. Conclusions: An. graveolens oil has a good potential as a larvicidal, pupicidal and oviposition deterrent agent for controlling Ae. aegypti.

Advance in main functional ingredients and mechanism of anticancer plant essential oils / 中草药

Cancer is a serious threat to human health with a high fatality rate. Modern anticancer methods, including surgery, radiotherapy, and chemotherapy, commonly have more serious side effects. Anticancer plant essential oils which now attach great importance to cancer treatment, have many advantages such as multi-target, multi-effect, low adverse reaction, improving the body immunity, not easy to produce drug resistance, etc. The main active ingredients and the anticancer mechanism of essential oils were reviewed in this paper. Nineteen kinds of plant essential oils, including Cymbopogon flexuosus, Salvia officinalis, Lycopus lucidus, Lavandula angustifolia, Smyrnium olusatrum, peel of Citrus reticulate, leaves of Myrica rubra, and so on, displayed their prominent anti-cancer activities. Specifically, limonene, β-elemene, menthol, patchouli alcohol, thymol, eugenol, citral, β-caryophyllene, and their oxide may be the main anticancer composition of plant essential oils.

Advance in study on plant essential oils for their inhibitory effects on fungal growth and mycotoxin synthesis / 中草药

Fungi and mycotoxins contamination in food, fruits, and vegetables, Chinese herbal medicines and agricultural commodities has not only led to a huge waste of resources and economic losses, but also posed the potential threats for human's safety and health, which has been widely concerned in the world. The researchers are trying their best to look for the scientific and effective methods to control the fungi growth and mycotoxins production in these matrices. Although some synthetic chemicals have been usually used as fungicides, they were still prohibited owing to the disadvantages of residues, public hazards, drug resistance, and so on. Many plant essential oils (PEOs), because of their advantages including broad-spectrum antifungal activity, high volatility, short degradation period, minimal residues, non-toxicity or low toxicity, friendly to human and environment, have the attractive attention of scientific community towards the development of eco-friendly botanical fungicides. The paper reviewed the distribution of PEOs, together with their inhibitory effects on fungal growth and mycotoxins production, antifungal spectrum, safety assessment, and antifungal mechanism to provide the scientific evidences for developing effective green fungicides.

Control of Tetranychus urticae Koch by extracts of three essential oils of chamomile, marjoram and Eucalyptus

<p><b>OBJECTIVE</b>To evaluate the acaricidal activity of extracts of three essential oils of chamomile, marjoram and Eucalyptus against Tetranychus urticae (T. urticae) Koch.</p><p><b>METHODS</b>Extracts of three essential oils of chamomile, marjoram and Eucalyptus with different concentrations (0.5%, 1.0%, 2.0%, 3.0% and 4.0%) were used to control T. urticae Koch.</p><p><b>RESULTS</b>The results showed that chamomile (Chamomilla recutita) represented the most potent efficient acaricidal agent against Tetranychus followed by marjoram (Marjorana hortensis) and Eucalyptus. The LC50 values of chamomile, marjoram and Eucalyptus for adults were 0.65, 1.84 and 2.18, respectively and for eggs 1.17, 6.26 and 7.33, respectively. Activities of enzymes including glutathione-S-transferase, esterase (α-esterase and β-esterase) and alkaline phosphatase in susceptible mites were determined and activities of enzymes involved in the resistance of acaricides were proved. Protease enzyme was significantly decreased at LC50 of both chamomile and marjoram compared with positive control. Gas chromatography-mass spectrometer (GC-MS) proved that the major compositions of Chamomilla recutita are α-bisabolol oxide A (35.251%), and trans-β-farersene (7.758%), while the main components of Marjorana hortensis are terpinene-4-ol (23.860%), p-cymene (23.404%) and sabinene (10.904%).</p><p><b>CONCLUSIONS</b>It can be concluded that extracts of three essential oils of chamomile, marjoram and Eucalyptus possess acaricidal activity against T. urticae.</p>

In vitro Evaluation of Antidermatophytic Activity of Egyptian Bee Propolis in Combination with Plant Essential Oils in Sheep Hoof Plate: An Experimental Model

Bee propolis ethanolic extract with some plant essential oils was investigated for its antidermatophytic properties. The tested plant essential oils included jasmine, clove, lemon, Arabian jasmine, mint, rosa, olive and basil. The antidermatophytic activity has been compared to Naftifine-HCl and Clotrimazole used for dermatophyte treatment. Experimental model has been tested using sheep hoof plate for the in vitro tests to stimulate human nails. Mint, clove and basil with 4 mg/ml of bee propolis have a comparable efficacy to those of Naftifine-HCl and Clotrimazole. There is a great necessity for new effective low price and safe antidermatophyte agents to avoid recurrent infection. Propolis synergistic could be of great importance with essential oils of plants in dermatophyte therapy.