Phytochemical analysis of Spergula arvensis and evaluation of its larvicidal activity against malarial vector An.culicfiacies

Abstract

Mosquito borne diseases have affected the health of people around the world especially in tropical countries. Present mosquito vector control methods relies upon the use of synthetic insecticides, which have negative impact on the ecosystem and are known to be persistent, therefore, alternative control measures are required. In this study, we have investigated the larvicidal activity of the Spergual arvensis extracts (Methanol, DCM and Hexane) against the malarial vector An. culicifacies. Among the three extracts, methanol extract exhibited 100% larvicidal activity with LC50 6.843 μg/mL. The chemical profile of methanol extract was obtained by GC-MS and FT-IR. GCMS analysis of methanol extract revealed 51 compounds; among them major compounds are mome inositol (38.11%), n-hexadecanoic acid (10.86%), octadecanoic acid (1.46%), tetradecanoic acid (2.22%), linoleic acid (6.79%). N-9-hexadecenal (8.18%) heneicosane (1.28%) and phytol (1.67%). Histopathological analysis had revealed lesions primarily in the midgut of the larvae post exposure with the 24-h 2XLC50 of the extract. Present findings indicate that Spergula arvensis could serve as an ideal eco-friendly, single-step and inexpensive source for the control of An.culicifacies larvae.