Chemical Composition, Larvicidal and Repellent Activities of Wild Plant Essential Oils against <i>Aedes aegypti</i>

Bio-degradable and eco-friendly essential oils (EOs) extracted from <i>Mentha longifolia</i>, <i>Salsola imbricata</i>, <i>Erigeron bonariensis</i>, <i>E. canadensis</i>, <i>Ailanthus altissima</i>, and <i>Zanthoxylum armatum</i> were investigated for their repellent and larvicidal potential against <i>Aedes aegypti mosquitoes</i>. The EOs of <i>M. longifolia</i>, <i>S. imbricata</i>, <i>E. bonariensis</i>, <i>E. canadensis</i>, <i>A. altissima</i>, and <i>Z. armatum</i> exhibited 99.0%, 96.8%, 40.2%, 41.7%, 29.1%, and 13.2% repellency against <i>mosquitoes</i> at a tested dose of 33.3 μg/cm², respectively. In time span bioassays, the EOs of <i>M. longifolia</i>, <i>S. imbricata</i>, <i>E. bonariensis</i>, and <i>E. canadensis</i> showed more than 40% repellency for 60 min at a tested dose of 330 μg/cm². Larvicidal bioassays revealed that larvae of <i>Ae. aegypti</i> were the most susceptible to <i>M. longifolia</i> (LC₅₀, 39.3 mg/L), <i>E. bonariensis</i> (LC₅₀, 26.0 mg/L), <i>E. canadensis</i> (LC₅₀, 35.7 mg/L), and <i>Z. armatum</i> (LC₅₀, 35.9 mg/L) EOs upon 48 h exposure. The most abundant constituents in the EOs of <i>M. longifolia</i>, <i>S. imbricata</i>, <i>E. bonariensis</i>, <i>E. canadensis</i> and <i>A. altissima</i> were piperitone oxide (45.5%), carvone (39.9%), matricaria ester (43.1%), (31.7%) and eugenol (24.4%), respectively. Our study demonstrates that EOs of <i>M. longifolia</i>, <i>S. imbricata</i>, <i>E. bonariensis</i>, and <i>E. canadensis</i> might be used to control <i>Ae. aegypti</i> mosquitoes without harming humans or the environment.