A comprehensive review of the larvicidal effects of medicinal plant extracts on Anopheles subpictus and Culex tritaeniorhynchus

Abstract

As a sustainable and environmentally benign method of controlling mosquitoes, the larvicidal efficacy of medicinal plant extracts against Anopheles subpictus and Culex tritaeniorhynchus has attracted a lot of attention. There is a range of such extracts from plants worldwide that are rich in phytochemicals and include but are not limiting to alkaloids, flavonoids, terpenoids and essential oils from plants such as Azadirachta indica, Ocimum sanctum, Cymbopogon citratus, Murraya koenigii, Eclipta prostrata, and Calotropis procera. It was established that the extracts are effective in exerting larvicidal effect and the higher the concentration, the greater the mortality the more potent they are. Aside from the functional efficacy of these plant-based interventions as insecticide agents, the fact that they are biodegradable and not toxic is an advantage owing to the negative effects associated with chemical pollutants and insecticide resistance. The aim of this review is to assess the available evidence on the efficacy of these plants in controlling larval stages of mosquito and the contribution of these mosquito larvicidal plants in the integrated vector control of malaria disease.