LARVICIDAL AND PUPICIDAL ACTIVITIES OF CRUDE AND FRACTIONATED EXTRACTS OF ACACIA PENNATA (L.) WILLD. SUBSP INSUAVIS SHOOT TIPS AGAINST AEDES AEGYPTI (L.) (DIPTERA: CULICIDAE).

Acacia pennata subsp insuavis, or Cha-om in Thai, is a common vegetable found in Thailand. It has been used as a medicinal herb for a long time. From the literature, antinociceptive, anti-inflammatory, antimicrobial, and anti-helminthic activities were reported. In this study, we investigated two new actions of this plant: larvicide and pupicide. The crude ethanolic and fractionated extracts of A. pennata shoot tips were tested against aquatic stages of the dengue virus vector, Aedes aegypti mosquito. The 1st-4th instar larvae and pupae of Ae. aegypti were subjected for bioassays by following the standard protocol of WHO. The larval and pupal mortalities were observed after 24- and 48-hour exposure times. The bioassays demonstrated that stronger efficacy was found from the fractionated extracts than the crude extracts. The LC50 values against the 3rd instar larvae were 39.45-50.75 mg/l (fractionated extracts) and 244.50 mg/l (crude extracts). It also effects the pupae with the LC50 values of 44.10-53.73 mg/l and 87.27 mg/l for the fractionnated and the crude extracts, respectively. The bioassays demonstrated the effective mosquito larvicide and pupicide of A. pennata extracts. It could be an alternative candidate for the development of phytotoxin for controlling mosquito vectors.