Larvicidal and mosquito repellent action of peppermint (Mentha piperita) oil
Introduction
The essential oils of mints, a group of plants belonging to the family Labiateae, are widely used. The various types of mints, which are cultivated commercially in different parts of the world are Japanese mint (Mentha arvensis), Peppermint (M. piperita L.), Spearmint (M. spicata) and Bergamont mint (M. citrata) (Husain et al., 1988). The present study was carried out on the oil of Mentha piperita L. This plant is a native of the Mediterranean region, which is now grown all over the world. The plant is a perennial glabrous herb with a strong, pepper-like, pungent odour and hence the specific name ‘piperita’. Peppermint oil is a colourless, pale yellow liquid with a strong agreeable odour and a powerful aromatic taste. Menthol is the major constituent of this oil. Peppermint oil is the most popular and widely used essential oil employed in flavouring, pharmaceuticals, confectionery and medicines. The Wealth of India, 1962, Chaudhry et al., 1957.
Several phytochemicals extracted from various botanical sources have been reported to have detrimental effects on mosquitoes (Syamala Devi and Vasudevan, 1995). Some of the promising essential oils which have shown biocidal activity are plants from the genus Tagetes Wells et al., 1992, Perich et al., 1995, Vasudevan et al., 1997a, Vasudevan et al., 1997b and Ocimum (Bhatnagar et al., 1993). Oils extracted from plants are also repellents for adult mosquitoes (Curtis et al., 1990). Protection against mosquito bite was reported for the genus Cymbopogan Ansari and Razdan, 1995, Rutledge et al., 1983, Osmani et al., 1972, Pelargonium citrosum (Matsude et al., 1996) and extracts of neem seed (Sharma et al., 1993) and Lantana camara flowers (Dua et al., 1996). Since no report was available on peppermint oil, studies were carried out to evaluate this oil as a larvicide, adulticide as well as mosquito repellent.
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Extraction of oil
Fresh leaves of peppermint (Mentha piperita L.) were collected from Dulhera village, Haryana, India. The oil was steam distilled in an one-ton steam distillation still at the village site. The yield of oil was 0.5% of fresh leaves. The chemical analysis of the oil was done using a Perkin Elmer 3920B Gas Chromatograph. The five major components identified were menthol (81.1%), menthone (5.8%), isomenthone (4.9%), menthyl acetate (1.6%) and neomenthol (2.9%). This peppermint oil was thus very
Results and discussion
Results of the larvicidal activity of peppermint oil against different species of mosquitoes are presented in Table 1. In terms of corrected mortality as defined therein, 100% mortality within 24 h was obtained against Cx. quinquefasciatus, 90% for Ae. aegypti and 85% for An. stephensi at 3 ml/m2. For Ae aegypti 100% mortality was achieved at 3 ml/m2 in 48 h or 4 ml/m2 in 24 h. For An. stephensi 100% mortality at 4 ml/m2 in 72 h was observed.
Fecundity and fertility of emerged females from
Acknowledgements
A Research Associateship to one of the authors (MT) from CSIR, New Delhi is gratefully acknowledged. Support of the Department of Science and Technology is also acknowledged.
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