Enantioselective response of olfactory receptors of the mosquito Aedes aegypti to major components of Eucalyptus grandis x Eucalyptus camaldulensis essential oils.

PAULA GONZALEZ; PAOLA GONZALEZ AUDINO; HÉCTOR MASUH

Colonia del Sacramento

Encuentro; First Meeting of the Latin American Association of Chemical Ecology (ALAEQ); 2010

Universidad de la República, Facultad de Química, Laboratorio de Ecología Química

Dengue is an acute viral infection transmitted by mosquitoes Aedes aegypti (L.) and Aedes albopictus (Skuse). Mosquito control by ethnobotanical products is an important activity in studies of dengue. Crude botanical extracts, essential oils and others plants components are studied and used in different areas of insect pests control including the application as insecticides and mosquito repellents.Previous studies of our laboratory [1] established the composition of the interspecific hybrid Eucalyptus grandis x Eucalyptus camaldulensis essential oil by gas chromatography-mass spectrometry, determining the presence of 1,8-cineol at a rate of 49.65%, α - pinene in 30.65%, α-terpineol in 4.05%, p-cymene in 2.77%, trans- pinocarveol in 2.75%, linalool acetate in 1.43%, borneol in 1.42% and β - pinene at 1% as main components.Chromatographic conditions with chiral column were optimized for the separation of optical isomers of major components of E. grandis x E. camaldulensis essential oil. Enantiomeric composition was determined for components with optical activity: α ? pinene, β ? pinene, trans-pinocarveol and α-terpineol.Gas chromatography coupled to electroantennographic detection (GC-EAD) was used in Ae. aegypti to determine if any of the major components of essential oil under study elicit a signal in mosquito antennae. The results showed electrophysiological activity for 1,8-cineol and the (-) - α ? pinene isomer.Electroantennography (EAG) technique was performed to confirm electrophysiological activity of the major components of the essential oil under study. Studies of electrophysiological activity of individual components of the oil are presented here.[1] Lucia A, Licastro S, Zerba E and Masuh H (2008).Yield, chemical composition and bioactivity of essential oils from twelve species of Eucalyptus on Aedes aegypti (L.). Entomologia experimentalis et applicata 129(1): 107-114.This work was supported by the Agencia Nacional de Promoción Científica y Técnica (PICT 2005, Nº 26479, Innovación en el control de la transmisión vectorial del dengue por Aedes aegypti).