Larvicidal activity against Aedes aegypti of some plants native to the West-Central region of Brazil

• Published in: Bioresource technology Vol. 100; no. 24; pp. 6647 - 6650
• Main Authors: Garcez, Walmir S., Garcez, Fernanda R., da Silva, Lilliam M.G.E., Hamerski, Lidilhone
• Format: Journal Article
• Language: English
• Published: Kidlington Elsevier Ltd 01-12-2009; [New York, NY]: Elsevier Ltd; Elsevier
• Subjects: Aedes - drug effects; Aedes aegypti; alkaloids; Animals; Aporphines - chemistry; Biological and medical sciences; Brazil; chemical structure; Dengue; Dicentrine; Fundamental and applied biological sciences. Psychology; indigenous species; insecticidal properties; Insecticides - pharmacology; Larva - drug effects; Larvicide; larvicides; Mosquito control; Ocotea; Ocotea velloziana; plant extracts; Plant Extracts - pharmacology; Plants - chemistry; Brazil; South America; America; Bolivia, Santa Cruz, Puerto Suarez, Pantanal; Dicentrine; Ocotea velloziana; Mosquito control; Larvicide; Dengue; Insecta; Mortality; Infection; Sanitary control; Larva; Arthropoda; Dicotyledones; Viral disease; Angiospermae; Arbovirus disease; Culicidae; Hardwood forest tree; Spermatophyta; Aedes aegypti; Invertebrata; Lauraceae; Diptera
• ISSN: 0960-8524; 1873-2976
• DOI: 10.1016/j.biortech.2009.06.092

A total of 42 ethanolic extracts from 30 different plant species, native to the Pantanal and Cerrado of the West-Central region of Brazil, have been evaluated for their larvicidal activity against
Aedes aegypti larvae, the vector of dengue and dengue hemorrhagic fevers. Among the extracts tested, that obtained from the trunk bark of
Ocotea velloziana was the most active. Using a bioassay-directed fractionation of this extract, the active constituent was isolated and characterized as the aporphine alkaloid (+)-dicentrine. Its structure was established on the basis of
1H and
13C NMR spectra, optical rotation and by comparison with an authentic sample. This is the first report on the larvicidal activity against
A. aegypti of this alkaloid. Our results suggest that (+)-dicentrine may be considered as a promising natural mosquito larvicidal agent.