Larvicide potential of genus CrotonL. (Euphorbiaceae)inbiological control of Aedes aegyptiL. (Diptera: Culicidae)

ABSTRACT

The reemerging diseases caused by Aedes aegyptiare one of the main public health problems in the world. The control of mosquitoes using larvicidal compounds from products of plant origin is anexcellent alternative. This study aims to evaluate the larvicidal potential of fractions in hexane, chloroform, ethyl acetate and hydromethanol from the ethanolicleaf extract of two species of the genus CrotonL. (Euphorbiaceae) against larval forms of A. aegypti, as an alternative tool to control this vector. Dry leaves of Croton betaceusBaill. and Croton lundianus(Didr.) Müll.Arg. were used for biological tests. The compounds were extracted with ethanol (99.8%). The ethanolic extracts of the leaves were suspended in a methanol / water solution and were successively subjected to the liquid-liquid division process with solvents of different polarities hexane, chloroform and ethyl acetate, giving rise to the four fractions. Larvicidal tests were performed with the ethanol extract and fractions resulting from the partition. In the study, the crude extract and the fractions showed larvicidal potential, being hexane fractionthe one with greatest activity.Mortality in C. betaceusfractions was up to 40%. Croton lundianuspresented mortality of up to 93.33% of the larvaesubmitted to the test. Data analysis showed larvicidal activity in the crude extract and fractions. The hexane fraction was more effective, especially in C. lundianus.