Abstract
Mosquitoes transmit serious human diseases, causing millions of deaths every year. Mosquito control is to enhance the health and quality of life of county residents and visitors through the reduction of mosquito populations. Mosquito control is a serious concern in developing countries like India due to the lack of general awareness, development of resistance, and socioeconomic reasons. Today, nanotechnology is a promising research domain which has a wide ranging application in vector control programs. These are nontoxic, easily available at affordable prices, biodegradable, and show broad-spectrum target-specific activities against different species of vector mosquitoes. In the present study, larvicidal activity of aqueous leaf extract and silver nanoparticles (AgNPs) synthesized using C. asiatica plant leaves against late third instar larvae of Anopheles stephensi, Aedes aegypti, and Cx. quinquefasciatus. The range of varying concentrations of synthesized AgNPs (8, 16, 24, 32, and 40 μg/mL) and aqueous leaf extract (40, 80, 120, 160, and 200 μg/mL) were tested against the larvae of An. stephensi, Ae. aegypti, and Cx. quinquefasciatus. The synthesized AgNPs from C. asiatica were highly toxic than crude leaf aqueous extract in three important vector mosquito species. The results were recorded from UV–Vis spectrum, Fourier transform infrared spectroscopy, scanning electron microscopy, and energy-dispersive X-ray spectroscopy analysis (EDX). Considerable mortality was evident after the treatment of C. asiatica for all three important vector mosquitoes. The LC50 and LC90 values of C. asiatica aqueous leaf extract appeared to be effective against An. stephensi (LC50, 90.17 μg/mL; LC90, 165.18 μg/mL) followed by Ae. aegypti (LC50, 96.59 μg/mL; LC90, 173.83 μg/mL) and Cx. quinquefasciatus (LC50, 103.08 μg/mL; LC90, 183.16 μg/mL). Synthesized AgNPs against the vector mosquitoes of An. stephensi, Ae. aegypti, and Cx. quinquefasciatus had the following LC50 and LC90 values: An. stephensi had LC50 and LC90 values of 17.95 and 33.03 μg/mL; Ae. aegypti had LC50 and LC90 values of 19.32 and 34.87 μg/mL; and Cx. quinquefasciatus had LC50 and LC90 values of 20.92 and 37.41 μg/mL. No mortality was observed in the control. These results suggest that the leaf aqueous extracts of C. asiatica and green synthesis of silver nanoparticles have the potential to be used as an ideal eco-friendly approach for the control of An. stephensi, Ae. aegypti, and Cx. quinquefasciatus. This is the first report on the mosquito larvicidal activity of the plant extracts and synthesized AgNPs.
Similar content being viewed by others
References
Abdul Rahuman A, Venkatesan P, GeethaK GG, Bagavan A, Kamaraj C (2008) Mosquito larvicidal activity of gluanol acetate, a tetracyclic triterpenes derived from Ficus racemosa Linn. Parasitol Res 103:333–339
Amer A, Mehlhorn H (2006) Persistency of larvicidal effects of plant oil extracts under different storage conditions. Parasitol Res 99:473–477
Amerasan D, Murugan K, Kovendan K, Mahesh Kumar P, Panneerselvam C, Subramaniam J, John William S, Hwang JS (2012) Adulticidal and repellent properties of Cassia tora Linn. (Family: Caesalpinaceae) against Culex quinquefasciatus, Aedes aegypti, and Anopheles stephensi. Parasitol Res 111(5):1953–1964
Ankamwar B, Damle C, Absar A, Mural S (2005) Biosynthesis of gold and silver nanoparticles using Emblica officinalis fruit extract, their phase transfer and transmetallation in an organic solution. J Nanosci Nanotechnol 10:1665–1671
Arjunan NK, Murugan K, Rejeeth C, Madhiyazhagan P, Barnard DR (2012) Green synthesis of silver nanoparticles for the control of mosquito vectors of malaria, filariasis, and dengue. Vector-Borne Zoonotic Dis 12(3):262–268
Bansal SK, Singh KV, Kumar S (2009) Larvicidal activity of the extracts from different parts of the plant Solanum xanthocarpum against important mosquito vectors in the arid region. J Environ Biol 30(2):221–226
Barik TK, Kamaraju R, Gowswami A (2012) Silica nanoparticles a potential new insecticide for mosquito vector control. Parasitol Res 111:1075–1083
Begum NA, Mondal S, Basu S, Laskar RA, Mandal D (2009) Biogenic synthesis of Au and Ag nanoparticles using aqueous solutions of Black Tea leaf extracts. Colloids Surf B: Biointerfaces 71(1):113–118
Dethloff GM, Naddy RB, Gorsuch JW (2007) Effects of sodium chloride on chronic silver toxicity to early life stages of rainbow trout (Oncorhynchus mykiss). Environ Toxicol Chem 26:1717–1725
Elango G, Bagavan A, Kamaraj C, Zahir AA, Rahuman AA (2009) Oviposition-deterrent, ovicidal, and repellent activities of indigenous plant extracts against Anopheles subpictus Grassi (Diptera: Culicidae). Parasitol Res 105(6):1567–1576
Elumalai EK, Prasad TN, Hemachandran J, Therasa VS, Thirumalai T, David E (2010) Extracellular synthesis of silver nanoparticles using leaves of Euphorbia hirta and their antibacterial activities. Int J Pharm Sci Res 2:549–554
Finney DJ (1971) Probit analysis, vol 551. Cambridge University Press, London, pp 68–72
Goodsell DS (2004) Bionanotechnology: lessons from nature. Wiley, Hoboken
Govindarajan M (2010a) Larvicidal efficacy of Ficus benghalensis L. plant leaf extracts against Culex quinquefasciatus Say, Aedes aegypti L. and Anopheles stephensi L. (Diptera: Culicidae). Eur Rev Med Pharmacol Sci 14(2):107–111
Govindarajan M (2010b) Larvicidal and repellent activities of Sida acuta Burm. F. (family: Malvaceae) against three important vector mosquitoes. Asian Pac J Trop Med 3(9):691–695
Govindarajan M (2011a) Evaluation of indigenous plant extracts against the malarial vector, Anopheles stephensi (Liston) (Diptera: Culicidae). Parasitol Res 109:93–103
Govindarajan M (2011b) Larvicidal and repellent properties of some essential oils against Culex tritaeniorhynchus Giles and Anopheles subpictus Grassi (Diptera: Culicidae). Asian Pac J Trop Med 4(2):106–111
Govindarajan M, Jebanesan A, Pushpanathan T (2008a) Larvicidal and ovicidal activity of Cassia fistula Linn. leaf extract against filarial and malarial vector mosquitoes. Parasitol Res 102(2):289–292
Govindarajan M, Jebanesan A, Pushpanathan T, Samidurai K (2008b) Studies on effect of Acalypha indica L. (Euphorbiaceae) leaf extracts on the malarial vector, Anopheles stephensi Liston (Diptera: Culicidae). Parasitol Res 103(3):691–695
Govindarajan M, Jebanesan A, Reetha D (2005) Larvicidal effect of extracellular secondary metabolites of different fungi against the mosquito, Culex quinquefasciatus Say. Trop Biomed 22(1):1–3
Govindarajan M, Sivakumar R (2012) Adulticidal and repellent properties of indigenous plant extracts against Culex quinquefasciatus and Aedes aegypti (Diptera: Culicidae). Parasitol Res 110:1607–1620
Govindarajan M, Sivakumar R, Amsath A, Niraimathi S (2011) Mosquito larvicidal properties of Ficus benghalensis L. (Family: Moraceae) against Culex tritaeniorhynchus Giles and Anopheles subpictus Grassi (Diptera: Culicidae). Asian Pac J Trop Med 4(7):505–509
Huang J, LiQ SD, Lu Y, Su Y, Yang X, Wang H, Wang Y, He N, Shao W, Hong J, Chen C (2007) Biosynthesis of silver and gold nanoparticles by novel sundried Cinnamomum camphora leaf. Nanotechnology 18:105104
Jayaseelan C, Rahuman AA, Rajakumar G, Santhoshkumar T, Kirthi AV, Marimuthu S, Bagavan A, Kamaraj C, Zahir AA, Elango G, Velayutham K, Rao KV, Karthik L, Raveendran S (2011a) Efficacy of plant-mediated synthesized silver nanoparticles against hematophagous parasites. Parasitol Res 111(2):921–933
Jayaseelan C, Rahuman AA, Rajakumar G, Vishnu Kirthi A, Santhoshkumar T, Marimuthu S, Bagavan A, Kamaraj C, Zahir AA, Elango G (2011b) Synthesis of pediculocidal and larvicidal silver nanoparticles by leaf extract from heart leaf moonseed plant. Tinospora cordifolia Miers. Parasitol Res 109(1):185–194
Kamaraj C, Bagavan A, Rahuman AA, Zahir AA, Elango G, Pandiyan G (2009) Larvicidal potential of medicinal plant extracts against Anopheles subpictus Grassi and Culex tritaeniorhynchus Giles (Diptera: Culicidae). Parasitol Res 104(5):1163–1171
Kim KJ, SungWS SBK, Moon SK, Choi JS, Kim JG, Lee DG (2009) Antifungal activity and mode of action of silver nanoparticles on Candida albicans. Biometals 22(2):235–242
Kirthi AV, Rahuman AA, Rajakumar G, Marimuthu S, Santhoshkumar T, Jayaseelan C, Velayutham K (2011) Acaricidal, pediculocidal and larvicidal activity of synthesized ZnO nanoparticles using wet chemical route against blood feeding parasites. Parasitol Res 109(2):461–472
Kovendan K, Arivoli S, Maheshwaran R, Baskar K, Vincent S (2012) Larvicidal efficacy of Sphaeranthus indicus, Cleistanthus collinus and Murraya koenigii leaf extracts against filarial vector, Culex quinquefasciatus Say (Diptera: Culicidae). Parasitol Res 111(3):1025–1035
Kumar V, Yadav SC, Yadav SK (2010) Syzygium cumini leaf and seed extract mediated biosynthesis of silver nanoparticles and their characterization. J Chem Technol Biotechnol 85(10):1301–1309
Kumar V, Yadav SK (2009) Plant-mediated synthesis of silver and gold nanoparticles and their applications. J Chem Technol Biotechnol 84:151–157
Lee SE (2000) Mosquito larvicidal activity of pipernonaline, a piperidine alkaloid derived from long pepper, Piper longum. J Am Mosq Control Assoc 16:245–247
Macedo ME, Consoli RA, Grandi TS, dos Anjos AM, De Oliveira AB, Mendes NM, Queiróz RO, Zani CL (1997) Screening of Asteraceae (Compositae) plant extracts for larvicidal activity against Aedes fluviatilis (Diptera: Culicidae). Mem Inst Oswaldo Cruz 92:565–570
Manusadzianas L, Grigutyt R, Jurkonien S, Karitonas R, Sadauskas K, Férard JF, Cotelle S, Foucaud L (2009) Toxicity of zinc oxide nanoparticle suspensions to aquatic biota. METZ ISTA14: VIII 30–IX 04
Marimuthu S, Rahuman AA, Rajakumar G, Santhoshkumar T, Kirthi AV, Jayaseelan C, Bagavan A, Zahir AA, Elango G, Kamaraj C (2010) Evaluation of green synthesized silver nanoparticles against parasites. Parasitol Res 108(6):1541–1549
Morones JR, Elechiguerra JL, Camacho A, Holt K, Kouri JB, Ramfrez JT, Yacaman MJ (2005) The bactericidal effect of silver nanoparticles. Nanotechnology 16:2346–2353
Nadworny PL, Wang J, Tredget EE, Burrell RE (2008) Antiinflammatory activity of nanocrystalline silver in a porcine contact dermatitis model. Nanomedicine 4(3):241–251
Panneerselvam C, Ponarulselvam S, Murugan K (2011) Potential antiplasmodial activity of synthesized silver nanoparticle using Andrographis paniculata Nees (Acanthaceae). Arch Appl Sci Res 3(6):208–217
Patil CD, Borase HP, Patil SV, Salunkhe RB, Salunkhe BK (2012) Larvicidal activity of silver nanoparticles synthesized using Pergularia daemia plant latex against Aedes aegypti and Anopheles stephensi and non target fish Poicillia reticulata. Parasitol Res 111(2):555–562
Ponarulselvam S, Panneerselvam C, Murugan K, Aarthi A, Kalimuthu K, Thangamani S (2012) Synthesis of silver nanoparticles using leaves of Catharanthus roseus Linn. G. Don and their antiplasmodial activities. Asian Pac J Trop Biomed 574–580
Priyadarshini K, Murugan K, Panneerselvam C, Ponarulselvam S, Hwang J-S, Nicoletti M (2012) Biolarvicidal and pupicidal potential of silver nanoparticles synthesized using Euphorbia hirta against Anopheles stephensi Liston (Diptera: Culicidae). Parasitol Res 111(3):997–1006
Rajakumar G, Abdul Rahuman A (2011) Larvicidal activity of synthesized silver nanoparticles using Eclipta prostrata leaf extract against filariasis and malaria vectors. Acta Trop 118(3):196–203
Rogers JV, Parkinson CV, Choi YW, Speshock JL, Hussain SM (2008) A preliminary assessment of silver nanoparticle inhibition of monkeypox virus plaque formation. Nanoscale Res Lett 3:129–133
Salunkhe RB, Patil SV, Patil CD, Salunke BK (2011) Larvicidal potential of silver nanoparticles synthesized using fungus Cochliobolus lunatus against Aedes aegypti (Linnaeus, 1762) and Anopheles stephensi Liston (Diptera; Culicidae). Parasitol Res 109(3):823–831
Santhoshkumar T, Rahuman AA, Rajakumar G, Marimuthu S, Bagavan A, Jayaseelan C, Zahir AA, Elango G, Kamaraj C (2011) Synthesis of silver nanoparticles using Nelumbo nucifera leaf extract and its larvicidal activity against malaria and filariasis vectors. Parasitol Res 108(3):693–702
Sathishkumar M, Sneha K, Won SW, Cho CWS, Kim Yun YS (2009) Cinnamon zeylanicum bark extract and powder mediated green synthesis of nano-crystalline silver particles and its bactericidal activity. Colloids SurfB: Biointerfaces 73:332–338
Shankar SS, Rai A, Ahmad A, Sastry MJ (2004) Rapid synthesis of Au, Ag and bimetallic Au shell nanoparticles using Neem. J Colloid Interface Sci 275:496–502
Song JY, Kim BS (2009) Rapid biological synthesis of silver nanoparticles using plant leaf extracts. Bioprocess Biosyst Eng 32:79–84
Soni N, Prakash S (2012) Efficacy of fungus mediated silver and gold nanoparticles against Aedes aegypti larvae. Parasitol Res 110:175–184
Tian N, Liu Z, Huang J, Luo G, Liu S, Liu X (2007) Isolation and preparation of flavonoids from the leaves of Nelumbo nucifera Gaertn by preparative reversed-phase high-performance liquid chromatography. Se Pu 25:88–92
Tripathi A, Chandrasekaran N, Raichur AM, Mukherjee A (2009) Antibacterial applications of silver nanoparticles synthesized by aqueous extract of Azadirachta indica (Neem) leaves. J Biomed Nanotechnol 5(1):93–98
Veerekumar K, Govindarajan M, Rajeswary M (2013) Green synthesis of silver nanoparticles using Sida acuta (Malvaceae) leaf extract against Culex quinquefasciatus, Aedes aegypti and Anopheles stephensi (Diptera: Culicidae). Parasitol Res 112(12):4073–4085
Veerekumar K, Govindarajan M, Rajeswary M (2014) Low-cost and eco-friendly green synthesis of silver nanoparticles using Feronia elephantum (Rutaceae) against Culex quinquefasciatus, Anopheles stephensi, and Aedes aegypti (Diptera: Culicidae). Parasitol Res 113:1775–1785
Vivekanandhan S, Misra M, Mohanty AK (2009) Biological synthesis of silver nanoparticles using Glycine max (soybean) leaf extract: an investigation on different soybean varieties. J Nanosci Nanotechnol 9(12):6828–6833
World Health Organization (2005) Guidelines for laboratory and field testing of mosquito larvicides. Communicable disease control, prevention and eradication, WHO pesticide evaluation scheme. WHO, Geneva, WHO/CDS/WHOPES/GCDPP/1.3
World Health Organization (2012a) Lymphatic filariasis. http://www.who.int/mediacentre/factsheets/fs102/en/. Accessed 10 Mar 2014
World Health Organization (2012b) WHO 10 facts on malaria. http://www.who.int/features/factfiles/malaria/en/index.html. Accessed 10 Mar 2014
World Health Organization (2012c) Dengue and severe dengue. http://www.who.int/mediacentre/factsheets/fs1117/en/. Accessed 10 Mar 2014
Acknowledgments
The authors would like to thank Professor and Head of the Department of Zoology, Annamalai University for the laboratory facilities provided. The authors would also like to acknowledge the cooperation of staff members of the VCRC (ICMR), Pondicherry.
Author information
Authors and Affiliations
Corresponding author
Rights and permissions
About this article
Cite this article
Muthukumaran, U., Govindarajan, M. & Rajeswary, M. Mosquito larvicidal potential of silver nanoparticles synthesized using Chomelia asiatica (Rubiaceae) against Anopheles stephensi, Aedes aegypti, and Culex quinquefasciatus (Diptera: Culicidae). Parasitol Res 114, 989–999 (2015). https://doi.org/10.1007/s00436-014-4265-2
Received:
Accepted:
Published:
Issue Date:
DOI: https://doi.org/10.1007/s00436-014-4265-2