Formulation and evaluation of novel and natural mosquito repellent liquid to prevent dengue mosquitoes

Abstract

Syzygium aromaticum, Cymbopogon citratus and Cinnamon cassia are plants that grow wildly in many tropical countries of Asia such as Malaysia, China and Indonesia. They belong to the family of Myrtaceae, Graminae, and Lauraceae respectively. Commonly, S. aromaticum and C. cassia are used as spices in Malay cuisine. Their essential oils have a great smelling which able to repel the mosquitoes effectively with less harmful side effects to the users and the environment. The present study was to formulate and evaluate the mosquito repellent liquid against dengue mosquitos, which containing the combination of natural herbs. The plants materials were extracted with methanol using maceration method. The methanolic extract of the plant materials were formulated with the concentration of 10% extracts and 1% essential oils. The formulated liquid mosquito repellent was evaluated using standard procedure stated in SIRIM MS 1497:2007. Ten female mosquitoes were acclimatized and exposed to the odour of the formulated liquid mosquito repellent in the Y-Tube Olfactometer. The formulation showed a significant repellent activity against the dengue mosquitoes with mean of 66.67%, after three consecutive tests. In conclusion, we recommend this product to convert into market standards and need to be commercialized with low cost.