| Abstract: | Studies evaluated the effects of hexanic extracts from the fruits and flowers
ofClusia fluminensis and the main component of the flower
extract, a purified benzophenone (clusianone), against Aedes
aegypti. The treatment of larvae with the crude fruit or flower extracts
from C. fluminensis did not affect the survival ofAe.
aegypti (50 mg/L), however, the flower extracts significantly delayed
development of Ae. aegypti. In contrast, the clusianone (50 mg/L) isolate from the
flower extract, representing 54.85% of this sample composition, showed a highly
significant inhibition of survival, killing 93.3% of the larvae and completely
blocking development of Ae. aegypti. The results showed, for the first time, high
activity of clusianone against Ae. aegypti that both killed and inhibited mosquito
development. Therefore, clusianone has potential for development as a biopesticide
for controlling insect vectors of tropical diseases. Future work will elucidate the
mode of action of clusianone isolated from C. fluminensis. |
