Larvicidal activity of medicinal plant Eucalyptus leaf extracts against Anopheles mosquitoes collected from district Kohat

Abstract

Eucalyptus is one of the most diverse genuses among flowering trees with multiple stem. It mainly dominates Australia as it has more than 700 species found over there. Fresh leaves of Eucalyptus were collected from their natural habitat, that they were crushed and converted into powder form. To obtain plant extract, that powder was dissolved in different solvents, an artificial pond was designed at KDA region of district Kohat in bushy and semi green area where mosquitoes were considered to be in large number. Experiments were performed in 7 assays of Petri dishes in 4 steps; each Petri dish was filled with equal amount of water. About 20 healthy/active larvae were placed in every Petri dish at each step. A total of 140 larvae were used in each step (20 Larvae X 7 Petri dishes = 140 assays). Eucalyptus leaf extracts have a larvicidal activity against larvae of Anopheles mosquitoes. No larva was found dead till 7 hour of observation when distilled water was applied into Petri dishes. Larvicidal activity can be enhanced by applying maximum concentration of leaf extracts along with an extended time frame.