Tropical Journal of Pharmaceutical Research

Original Research Article | OPEN ACCESS

Larvicidal activity of Illicium difengpi BN Chang (Schisandraceae) stem bark and its constituent compounds against Aedes aegypti L

Ying Liu^1,2,3, Xin Chao Liu¹, Qi Yong Liu², Chang Niu³, Zhi Long Liu¹

¹Department of Entomology, China Agricultural University; ²Yuanmingyuan West Road, Haidian District, Beijing 100193, 2State Key Laboratory for Infectious Disease Prevention and Control, National Institute for Communicable Disease Control and Prevention, Chinese Center for Disease Control and Prevention, Beijing, 102206; ³College of Life Sciences, Capital Normal University, Haidian District, Beijing 100048, China.

For correspondence:- Zhi Liu Email: zhilongliu@cau.edu.cn Tel:+86-10-62732800

Received: 2 August 2014 Revised: 15 December 2014 Published: 30 January 2015

Citation: Liu Y, Liu XC, Liu QY, Niu C, Liu ZL. Larvicidal activity of Illicium difengpi BN Chang (Schisandraceae) stem bark and its constituent compounds against Aedes aegypti L. Trop J Pharm Res 2015; 14(1):103-109 doi: 10.4314/tjpr.v14i1.15

© 2015 The authors.
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Abstract

Purpose:To determine the larvicidal activity of the essential oil derived from Illicium difengpi B.N. Chang stem bark (Schisandraceae) and its major constituents against the larvae of Aedes aegypti L.

Methods:Essential oil of I. difengpi stem bark was obtained by hydrodistillation and analyzed by gas chromatography (GC) and gas chromaotography-mas spectrometry (GC-MS). The activity of the essential oil and its major constituents was evaluated, using World Health Organization (WHO) procedures, against the fourth instar larvae of A. aegypti for 24 h, and larval mortalities recorded at essential oil/compound concentrations ranging from 6.0 - 200 μg/mL.

Results:A total of 36 components of the essential oil of I. difengpi were identified. The principal compounds are safrole (18.21 %), linalool (13.47 %), 1,8-cineole (12.84 %), and myristicin (8.06 %) followed by α-terpineol (4.77 %), β-pinene (4.45 %) and 4-terpineol (4.38 %). The essential oil exhibited larvicidal activity against A. aegypti with LC₅₀ (median lethal concentration) of 31.68 μg/mL. The major constituents, myristicin, safrole, and 1, 8-cineole, exhibited LC₅₀ of 15.26, 39.45, and 72.18 μg/mL, respectively.

Conclusion:The findings obtained indicate that the essential oil of I. difengpi and its major constituents have potentials for use in the control of A. aegypti larvae and may therefore be useful in the search for newer, safer and more effective natural compounds as larvicides.

Keywords: Illicium difengpi, Aedes aegypti, Larvicidal activity, Myristicin, Safrole, 1,8-Cineole, Linalool