The main component of the scent of Senecio madagascariensis flowers is an attractant for Aedes aegypti (L.) (Diptera: Culicidae) mosquitoes

S. VON OPPEN; L. HARBURGUER; G. A. KASHIWAGI; P. GONZALEZ AUDINO

BULLETIN OF ENTOMOLOGICAL RESEARCH

CAMBRIDGE UNIV PRESS

Lugar: Cambridge; Año: 2022

0007-4853

Aedes aegypti (L.) (Diptera: Culicidae) is one of the main vectors of arboviruses, includingdengue, Zika, and chikungunya. It almost exclusively inhabits urban areas. Both sexes feedon plant carbohydrates, although for males, this is their only food source. In the case of floralnectars, mosquitoes locate plant sugar sources assisted by volatile compounds. In this work,we found that the floral scent of Senecio madagascariensis elicited a behavioral response inmales; therefore, we focused on identifying the volatiles emitted by these flowers. The terpenes(±)-α-pinene, β-pinene, sabinene, and phellandrene and 1-alkenes 1-undecene, and 1-nonenewere identified. To determine which compounds are bioactive, pure synthetic lures wereassessed using an olfactometer. Only the main compound 1-nonene was an attractant formales. Since our goal was the introduction of synthetic floral-based attractants in toxicsugar-baited traps, we formulated 1-nonene in solid paraffin and stearin matrices to obtaina controlled release system. The bioassay with a toxicological end point showed that theincorporation of a feeding attractant to the toxic sugar trap increased overall mortality.These results suggest that it is possible to use plant volatile compounds or flower cuttingsas male Ae. aegypti attractants to improve the efficacy of baited traps.