Abstract
The mosquito family Culicidae is the most common disease vector in the Diptera order. Almost all of them are bloodsuckers that cause a lot of major diseases, such as malaria, yellow fever and elephantiasis. The development of resistance in mosquitos to pyrethroid, organophosphate, and carbamate created the need for alternative insecticides. Therefore, 3rd instar Culex pipiens larvae were treated with the median lethal concentrations (LC50) of imidacloprid (IMI) and tannic acid. Biological tests were performed by following up the treated insects from the 3rd larval instar till the adult stages. The biological test showed that tannic acid was more effective than imidacloprid by increasing the larval period and decreasing both pupation percentage and pupal duration. The histopathological effect of the tested compound on the larvae's midgut epithelium was studied using light and transmission electron microscopy. A histological study showed that the treated larvae had cytopathological alterations of the midgut epithelium, muscular layers, epithelial cells and internal organelles. Both IMI and tannic acid showed nearly the same effect on the larvae histology. Based on these results, tested compounds could be used in the Integrated Pest Management (IPM) programs for greater effectiveness.
Highlights
Mosquitoes are one of the most effective insect vectors, transmitting a variety of diseases that are both common and deadly
Biological Evaluation of IMI and Tannic Acid on 3rd Larval Instar of Cx. pipiens: Table 1 shows that tannic acid was the most effective insecticide by significantly influencing the larval duration, causing it to be delayed from 4.8±1.16 to 7.4±1.72 days
It directly acts on the nicotinic acetylcholine receptor (Suchail et al, 2004)
Summary
Mosquitoes are one of the most effective insect vectors, transmitting a variety of diseases that are both common and deadly. Culex mosquitoes (Diptera: Culicidae) are the world's most widely distributed mosquitoes. The Culex pipiens complex has spread through all continents, from its African origins to tropical and temperate climate zones. Rift Valley Fever, West Nile encephalitis and St. Louis encephalitis are only a few of the diseases they spread (Saba et al, 2018). Lymphatic filariasis threatens approximately millions of people in many countries. Cx. pipiens is the most widespread mosquito species in Egypt, and it creates a health risk to humans in both urban and rural areas (Zahran and Abdelgaleil, 2011)
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