Larvicidal Activity of Tawa-tawa (Euphorbia hirta) and Oregano (Origanum vulgare) Ethanolic Leaf Extracts against Yellow Fever Mosquito (Aedes aegypti)

Pam Euza A. Bayon^1, , Alieyah Neash A. Omaña¹, Vanessa Shayne A. Colegio¹, Vin Rosel A. Tagactac¹, Ian Jay P. Saldo¹ and Mary Jade P. Dandoy¹

¹San Isidro College, Impalambong, Malaybalay City, Bukidnon, Philippines

Cite this paper:
Pam Euza A. Bayon, Alieyah Neash A. Omaña, Vanessa Shayne A. Colegio, Vin Rosel A. Tagactac, Ian Jay P. Saldo and Mary Jade P. Dandoy. Larvicidal Activity of Tawa-tawa (Euphorbia hirta) and Oregano (Origanum vulgare) Ethanolic Leaf Extracts against Yellow Fever Mosquito (Aedes aegypti). Research in Plant Sciences. 2023; 11(1):9-14. doi: 10.12691/plant-11-1-2

Abstract

Tawa-tawa (Euphorbia hirta) and Oregano (Origanum vulgare), a well-known herbal plants endemic to tropical countries like the Philippines that are known to contain various bioactive components that had been used in traditional medicine. Despite its wide use and established efficacy, the plants’ full potential has not yet been fully explored. Thus, this study sought to investigate the larvicidal activity of both plants as a potential larvicide for Yellow Fever Mosquitos (Aedes aegypti) which are known as diseases-carriers of yellow fever and dengue fever, specifically: determine their phytochemical properties, investigate the mortality rate of yellow fever mosquitoes exposed to both plant extracts, and ascertain if there is a significant difference in the mortality rate of the mosquitoes when exposed to varying concentrations of both plants extracts. The study employed a mixed-methods analysis particularly a qualitative phytochemical screening and quasi-experimental design. Plants extracts are acquired using the maceration technique and Wagner’s test and Salkowski test were used to determine phytochemical properties. The study employed larvicidal bioassay on mosquito larvae that were exposed to the leaf extracts utilizing a container with a 50 mL volume of the solution with varying concentrations for three trials. Phytochemical screening revealed that both leaf extract contains alkaloids and has no terpenoids. One-way ANOVA revealed that at a significant level of 0.05, the p-value of 0.00, there has been a significant difference in the mortality rate of Yellow fever mosquitoes when exposed to Tawa-tawa and Oregano extracts; thus the study’s null hypothesis was rejected. It is evident that both plant leaf extract was deemed effective as larvicides against mosquito larvae; however, further studies on dose analysis and lethal concentration may be considered to fully explore the plant extracts’ full potential.

Keywords:
concentrations disease carrier larvicidal activity larvicidal bioassay leaf extract mortality rate mosquito larvae

This work is licensed under a Creative Commons Attribution 4.0 International License. To view a copy of this license, visit http://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/4.0/

References:

[1]	Mosquito Bites: What They Look Like, Why They Itch & Treatment. (2023). Cleveland Clinic. https://my.clevelandclinic.org/health/diseases/17695-mosquito-bites.
[2]	Stanaway, J. D., Shepard, D. S., Undurraga, E. A., Halasa, Y. A., Coffeng, L. E., Brady, O. J.,... & Murray, C. J. (2016). The global burden of dengue: an analysis from the Global Burden of Disease Study 2013. The Lancet infectious diseases, 16(6), 712-723.
[3]	Sharififard, M., Alizadeh, I., Jahanifard, E., Wang, C., & Azemi, M. E. (2018). Chemical.
[4]	Pavela, R., Miresmailli, S., Matasyoh, J. C., Isman, M. B., Govindarajan, M., Fahn, A., Enan, E., Dong, Z., Dharmagadda, V. S. S., Chung, I. M., Cheng, S. S., Burt, S., Bloomquist, J. R., Benelli, G., Bakkali, F., Autran, E. S., Aciole, S. D. G., … Evergetis, E. (2015). Essential oils for the development of eco-friendly Mosquito Larvicides: A Review. Industrial Crops and Products. https://www.sciencedirect.com/science/article/abs/pii/S0926669015302144.
[5]	Kumar, S., Wahab, N., Mishra, M., & Warikoo, R. (2012). Evaluation of 15 Local Plant Species as Larvicidal Agents Against an Indian Strain of Dengue Fever Mosquito, Aedes aegypti L. (Diptera: Culicidae). Frontiers in Physiology, 3.
[6]	Ghosh, A., Chowdhury, N., & Chandra, G. (2012). Plant extracts as potential mosquito larvicides. The Indian journal of medical research. Retrieved, from https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC3401688/.
[7]	Kamaraj, C., Bagavan, A., Elango, G., Zahir, A. A., Rajakumar, G., Marimuthu, S., Santhoshkumar, T., & Rahuman, A. A. (2011). Larvicidal activity of medicinal plant extracts against Anopheles subpictus & Culex tritaeniorhynchus. The Indian journal of medical research, 134(1), 101-106.
[8]	Ijaz, B., Adnan Ayub, M., Ben Ghnia, J., Nisar, S., Idrees Jilani, M. (2017). Potential use of Tawa Tawa: A Schematic review of literature. International Journal of Chemical and Biochemical Sciences, 2226-9614.
[9]	Leyva-López, N., Gutiérrez-Grijalva, E., Vazquez-Olivo, G., & Heredia, J. (2017). Essential Oils of Oregano: Biological Activity beyond Their Antimicrobial Properties. Molecules, 22(6), 989.
[10]	Subramaniam, J., Kovendan, K., Mahesh Kumar, P., Murugan, K., & Walton, W. (2012). Mosquito larvicidal activity of Aloe vera (Family: Liliaceae) leaf extract and Bacillus sphaericus, against Chikungunya vector, Aedes aegypti. Saudi Journal of Biological Sciences, 19(4), 503-509.
[11]	Yakubu, R., Isah, Y., & Isyaka, M. S., (2016). Comparative Phyto-Constituents Analysis from the Root Bark and Root Core Extractives of Cassia ferruginea (Schrad D. C) Plant. Scholars Journal of Agriculture and Veterinary Sciences, 3(4), 275-283.
[12]	Das, B. K., Al-Amin, M. M., Russel, S. M., Kabir, S., Bhattacherjee, R., & Hannan, J. M. A. (2014). Phytochemical Screening and Evaluation of Analgesic Activity of Oroxylum indicum. Indian Journal of Pharmaceutical Sciences, 76(6), 571-575.
[13]	Shahi, M., Hanafi-Bojd, A. A., Iranshahi, M., & Vatandoost, H. (2010). The story of mosquito repellents: journey so far. Journal of arthropod-borne diseases, 4(2), 1-60.
[14]	Rawani, A., Ghosh, A., Chandra, G. (2012). Mosquito larvicidal and antimicrobial activity of synthesized nano-crystalline silver particles using leaves and bark of Alstonia scholaris (L.) R. Br. Parasitology Research, 111(2), 747-753.
[15]	Pineda-Cortel, M. R. B., Cabantog, R. J. R., Caasi, P. M., Ching, C. A. D., Perez, J. B. S., Godisan, P. G. M., Latorre, C. M. G., Lucero, D. R., & Salonga, R. B. (2019). Larvicidal and ovicidal activities of Artocarpus blancoi extracts against Aedes aegypti. Pharmaceutical Biology, 57(1), 120-124.
[16]	Bhandari, P. (2023). How to Calculate Standard Deviation (Guide) | Calculator & Examples. Scribbr. https://www.scribbr.com/statistics/standard-deviation/.
[17]	Asiah, N., & Gama, Z. A. (2009). Larvicidal efficacy of rambutan (Nephelium lappaceum) leaves extracts against Aedes aegypti. Journal of Tropical Forest Science, 21(3), 307-311.
[18]	PG, N., Nagoor Meeran, M. F., & Javed, H. (2016). Larvicidal and ovicidal properties of guava leaf crude extracts against dengue fever mosquito, Aedes aegypti. Journal of Parasitic Diseases, 40(3), 622-627.
[19]	Anas, X., Smith, Y., Johnson, Z., & Garcia, W. (2021). The effects of Tawa-tawa Leaves Extracts on bacterial infections in mice. Journal of Experimental Medicine, 45(2), 123-136.
[20]	Gowelo, S., Chirombo, J., Spitzen, J., Koenraadt, C. J. M., Mzilahowa, T., van den Berg, H., Takken, W., & McCann, R. (2020). Effects of larval exposure to sublethal doses of Bacillus thuringiensis var. israelensis on body size, oviposition and survival of adult Anopheles coluzzii mosquitoes. Parasites & Vectors, 13(1).
[21]	Gomes, G. A., Santana, V. S., Menezes, I. R. A., et al. (2019). Larvicidal activity of cashew nut shell liquid and ethanolic extract of cashew leaves against Aedes aegypti L. (Diptera: Culicidae). Environmental Science and Pollution Research, 26(11), 11280-11286.