Behavioral Response of Aedes aegypti (Diptera: Culicidae) Larvae to Synthetic and Natural Attractants and Repellents

PAULA V GONZALEZ; PAOLA GONZALEZ AUDINO; HÉCTOR MASUH

JOURNAL OF MEDICAL ENTOMOLOGY

ENTOMOLOGICAL SOC AMER

Lugar: Lanham; Año: 2015 vol. 52 p. 1315 - 1321

0022-2585

This research focuses on the analysis of olfactory-driven behaviour in Aedes aegypti (L.) (Diptera: Culicidae) larvae to synthetic or natural odorant stimuli. Our laboratory established a simple and sensitive behaviour assay, in which the orientation of the larvae to a range of odorant stimuli was monitored, and a performance index (PI) was calculated. It would represent the response of each odorant where +1 was indicative of full attraction while ?1 represented a complete repulsion. The widely used insect repellent N, N-diethyl-m-toluamide was studied, obtaining significant negative PI as well as for acetophenone and indole. A yeast extract, a known food source, was also assayed obtaining a significantly positive PI as well as for 2-methylphenol, 1-octen-3-ol, 3-methylphenol and fish food. On the other hand no response was observed for the essential oil of Eucalyptus grandis x Eucalyptus camaldulensis at the concentration tested.Furthermore, both the pretreatment of larvae with N- ethylmaleimide and the ablation of the antennae resulted in a suppression of behavioural responses. The study of responses of Ae. aegypti larvae to attractants and repellents could contribute to the understanding of the olfaction mechanism and potentially enhance the effectiveness of current vector control strategies.