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Mosquito oviposition deterrents

  • Plant-borne compounds and nanoparticles: challenges for medicine, parasitology and entomology
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Abstract

Mosquitoes are well-known vectors of disease and threaten the health of millions of people annually. While synthetic insecticides have been relied on to combat these diseases, insecticide resistance and environmental concerns have directed attention towards novel and more targeted mosquitocides derived from botanicals. Research on the activity of botanical derivatives has focused on mosquito larvae and adults with little attention given to their potential as oviposition deterrents against gravid female mosquitoes. This review explores the influence of chemical and biological factors on deterrence and examines issues relating to environmental persistence and non-target effects. With very few discoveries of new insecticide pathways, the answer to effective mosquito control may well reside within other ancient plant-based organisms that have co-resided and evolved with this ubiquitous pest.

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Acknowledgements

The authors wish to express their sincere appreciation to Dr. Giovanni Benelli for inviting them to write this paper, reading the full manuscript, enhancing its accuracy and clarity and providing valuable criticism.

The views expressed in this article are those of the authors and do not necessarily reflect the official policy or position of the Daniel K. Inouye Asia Pacific Center for Security Studies, the Department of Defense, or the US Government.

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Correspondence to Essam Abdel-Saalam Shaalan.

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Shaalan, E.AS., Canyon, D.V. Mosquito oviposition deterrents. Environ Sci Pollut Res 25, 10207–10217 (2018). https://doi.org/10.1007/s11356-017-0408-1

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