Screening seven commercial essential herb oils for larvicidal activity against the mosquito Aedes aegypti (Linnaeus), a vector of the dengue virus

ABSTRACT

Mosquitoes are tiny flying insects of great importance as vectors to many pathogenic organisms, including viruses.Aedes aegypti is a primary vector of the dengue virus that causes dengue fever, which is a globally important disease,threatening people in developing countries. In this research, we screened seven commercial herb essential oils,including ‎cassia, cinnamon, East Indian lemongrass, bay, sweet basil, holy basil, and ginger for larvicidal activityagainst larvae of the dengue virus vector A. aegypti. The results revealed the efficacy of seven commercial pureessential oils against mosquito larvae. The cinnamon oil had the highest larvicidal activity (LC50 = 0.03 ppm and LC90= 0.04 ppm), followed by cassia, holy basil, bay, sweet basil, East Indian lemongrass, and ginger essential oils. Theseresults are important from the public health perspective since they relate to a dengue vector that requires alternativeorganic substances for its control and elimination.