Abstract

Mosquito-borne diseases are a major public health problem, especially in tropical and subtropical regions; diseases include Zika virus disease, malaria, dengue fever, yellow fever, Japanese encephalitis, chikungunya and filariasis. In this study, we compared the efficacy of Volvariella volvacea (Bull. ex Fr.) mushroom extract and octenol (1-octen-3-ol) to kill larvae and attract adult Aedes aegypti (L.) and Culex sitiens Wiedemann mosquitoes. Five extract concentrations (120, 12, 1.2, 0.12 and 0.012 mg/L) for larvicidal tests and three concentrations (100, 10 and 1 mg/L) for attraction tests were used in this investigation. The result of the comparison between mushroom extract and octenol indicated significant difference in larvicidal and adult mosquito attraction bioassays. V. volvacea extract slightly killed Cx. sitiens and Ae. aegypti larvae, while 120 mg/L octenol killed almost all Cx. sitiens larvae (19.67±0.58). At a concentration of 10 mg/L, the mushroom extract attracted 63.30% and 35% of adult female Ae. aegypti and Cx. sitiens mosquitoes, respectively. Although the V. volvacea extract did not attract adult mosquitoes as effectively as octenol, it still attracted more than half of all tested Ae. aegypti mosquitoes. Thus, this extract could be an alternative inexpensive and eco-friendly means to increase mosquito trap efficiency, especially in Aedes control.

Key words: larvicidal, adult mosquito attractant activity, Volvariella volvacea, Aedes aegypti, Culex sitiens.