The Mosquito Larvicidal Activity of Essential Oils from Cymbopogon and Eucalyptus Species in Vietnam

Abstract

The larvicidal activity of essential oils (EOs) extracted from Cymbopogon citratus, Cymbopogon winterianus, Eucalyptus citriodora, and Eucalyptus camaldulensis aromatic plants grown in Vietnam was evaluated on Aedes aegypti larvae. The EOs were hydro-distilled in a Clevenger-type apparatus. The EOs were analyzed by gas chromatography–mass spectrometry (GC–MS). The mortality rates obtained from the bioassays were used to calculate the lethal concentrations (LC50) of the EOs by the probit analysis method. These essential oils exhibited toxicity to the larvae of Aedes aegypti. Results were obtained for Cymbopogon citratus (LC50 = 120.6 ppm), Cymbopogon winterianus (LC50 = 38.8 ppm), Eucalyptus citriodora (LC50 = 104.4 ppm), and Eucalyptus camaldulensis (LC50 = 33.7 ppm). The essential oils of Eucalyptus camaldulensis and Cymbopogon winterianus were found to be the most efficient, and their respective values of LC50 were 33.7 ppm, 38.8 ppm. In conclusion, this research adds to the growing body of literature on natural larvicides from essential oils against Aedes aegypti mosquitoes.