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Mosquitocidal and antibacterial activity of green-synthesized silver nanoparticles from Aloe vera extracts: towards an effective tool against the malaria vector Anopheles stephensi?

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Abstract

Mosquitoes represent an important threat for lives of millions of people worldwide, acting as vectors for devastating pathogens, such as malaria, yellow fever, dengue, and West Nile. In addition, pathogens and parasites polluting water also constitute a severe plague for populations of developing countries. Here, we investigated the mosquitocidal and antibacterial properties of Aloe vera leaf extract and silver nanoparticles synthesized using A. vera extract. Mosquitocidal properties were assessed in laboratory against larvae (I-IV instar) and pupae of the malaria vector Anopheles stephensi. Green-synthesized silver nanoparticles were tested against An. stephensi also in field conditions. Antibacterial properties of nanoparticles were evaluated against Bacillus subtilis, Klebsiella pneumoniae, and Salmonella typhi using the agar disk diffusion and minimum inhibitory concentration protocol. The synthesized silver nanoparticles were characterized by UV–vis spectrum, Fourier transform infrared spectroscopy (FTIR), scanning electron microscopy (SEM), and X-ray diffraction (XRD). In laboratory conditions, the A. vera extract was toxic against An. stephensi larvae and pupae, even at low dosages. LC50 were 48.79 ppm (I instar), 59.09 ppm (II instar), 70.88 ppm (III instar), 83.58 ppm (IV instar), and 152.55 ppm (pupae). Green-synthesized silver nanoparticles were highly toxic against An. stephensi. LC50 were 3.825 ppm (I instar), 4.119 ppm (II instar), 4.982 ppm (III instar), 5.711 ppm (IV instar), and 6.113 ppm (pupae). In field conditions, the application of A. vera-synthesized silver nanoparticles (10 × LC50) leads to An. stephensi larval reduction of 74.5, 86.6, and 97.7 %, after 24, 48, and 72 h, respectively. Nanoparticles also showed antibacterial properties, and the maximum concentration tested (150 mg/L) evoked an inhibition zone wider than 80 mm in all tested bacterium species. This study adds knowledge about the use of green synthesis of nanoparticles in medical entomology and parasitology, allowing us to propose A. vera-synthesized silver nanoparticles as effective candidates to develop newer and safer mosquitocidal control tools.

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Acknowledgments

Giovanni Benelli is supported by Mis. 124 MODOLIVI Grant. The funder had no role in study design, data collection and analysis, decision to publish, or preparation of the manuscript.

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Authors and Affiliations

  1. Division of Entomology, Department of Zoology, School of Life Sciences, Bharathiar University, Coimbatore, Tamil Nadu, 641046, India

    Devakumar Dinesh, Kadarkarai Murugan, Pari Madhiyazhagan, Chellasamy Panneerselvam, Palanisamy Mahesh Kumar, Balamurugan Chandramohan & Udaiyan Suresh

  2. Department of Environmental Biology, Sapienza University of Rome, Piazzale Aldo Moro 5, 00185, Rome, Italy

    Marcello Nicoletti

  3. State Key Laboratories for Agro-biotechnology and College of Biological Sciences, China Agricultural University, Beijing, China

    Wei Jiang

  4. Department of Agriculture, Food and Environment, University of Pisa, via del Borghetto 80, 56124, Pisa, Italy

    Giovanni Benelli

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  1. Devakumar Dinesh
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  2. Kadarkarai Murugan
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  3. Pari Madhiyazhagan
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  4. Chellasamy Panneerselvam
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  5. Palanisamy Mahesh Kumar
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  6. Marcello Nicoletti
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  7. Wei Jiang
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  8. Giovanni Benelli
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  9. Balamurugan Chandramohan
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  10. Udaiyan Suresh
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Correspondence to Giovanni Benelli.

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Dinesh, D., Murugan, K., Madhiyazhagan, P. et al. Mosquitocidal and antibacterial activity of green-synthesized silver nanoparticles from Aloe vera extracts: towards an effective tool against the malaria vector Anopheles stephensi?. Parasitol Res 114, 1519–1529 (2015). https://doi.org/10.1007/s00436-015-4336-z

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