The desert wormwood (Artemisia herba-alba) – From Arabian folk medicine to a source of green and effective nanoinsecticides against mosquito vectors

• Published in: Journal of photochemistry and photobiology. B, Biology Biology, 2018-03, Vol.180, p.225-234
• Main Authors: Aziz, Al Thabiani, Alshehri, Mohammed Ali, Panneerselvam, Chellasamy, Murugan, Kadarkarai, Trivedi, Subrata, Mahyoub, Jazem A., Hassan, Mo'awia Mukhtar, Maggi, Filippo, Sut, Stefania, Dall'Acqua, Stefano, Canale, Angelo, Benelli, Giovanni
• Format: Article
• Language: English
• Subjects: 1H NMR; Anopheles stephensi; Antibacterial activity; Aquatic insects; Artemisia herba-alba; Bactericidal activity; Culex pipiens; Culex quinquefasciatus; Culicidae; Dengue; Deserts; Fabrication; Flowers & plants; Folk medicine; Fourier transforms; Green synthesis; Insecticides; Insects; Larvicide; LC-DAD-MS; Malaria; Medicinal plants; Medicine; Microorganisms; Mosquitoes; Nanoparticles; NMR; Nuclear magnetic resonance; Organic chemistry; Pathogens; Pesticide; Phytochemicals; Public health; Saponins; Silver; Spectroscopy; Toxicity; Vectors; Zika virus
• ISSN: 1011-1344; 1873-2682
• DOI: 10.1016/j.jphotobiol.2018.02.012

The development of eco-friendly and effective insecticides is crucial for public health worldwide. Herein, we focused on the desert wormwood (Artemisia herba-alba), a plant widely used in Arabian traditional medicine, as a source of green nanoinsecticides against mosquito vectors, as well as growth inhibitors to be employed against microbial pathogens. Ag nanoparticles (AgNPs) fabricated with the A. herba-alba extract were tested on Indian and Saudi Arabian strains of Anopheles, Aedes and Culex mosquitoes. The chemical profile of the A. herba-alba extract was determined by LC-DAD-MS and 1H NMR studies. Then, AgNPs were studied using UV–vis spectroscopy, XRD, FTIR spectroscopy, TEM, and EDX analyses. Artemisia herba-alba-synthesized AgNPs showed high larvicidal toxicity against mosquitoes from both Indian and Saudi Arabian strains. LC50 of AgNPs against Indian strains was 9.76 μg/ml for An. stephensi, 10.70 μg/ml for Ae. aegypti and 11.43 μg/ml for Cx. quinquefasciatus, whereas against Saudi Arabian strains it was 33.58 μg/ml for Ae. aegypti and 38.06 μg/ml for Cx. pipiens. In adulticidal experiments, A. herba-alba extract showed LC50 ranging from 293.02 to 450 μg/ml, while AgNP LC50 ranged from 8.22 to 27.39 μg/ml. Further, low doses of the AgNPs inhibited the growth of selected microbial pathogens. Overall, A. herba-alba can be further considered as a source of phytochemicals, with special reference to saponins, for effective and prompt fabrication of AgNPs with relevant insecticidal and bactericidal activity against species of high public health importance. [Display omitted] •We tested Artemisia herba-alba as a source of insecticidal nanosilver (AgNPs).•Extract was studied by LC-DAD-MS + 1H NMR, AgNPs were studied by UV–vis, FTIR, TEM, XRD, EDX.•The extract and AgNPs were tested on Indian and Saudi Arabian strains of Anopheles, Aedes and Culex mosquitoes.•AgNP larvicidal LC50