MOSQUITO REPELLENT ACTIVITY OF THE LEAF EXTRACTS OF Cymbopogon citratus AND Eucalyptus globulus AGAINST Anopheles SPECIES

Plant-based repellents have been applied for generations in traditional practice as a personal protection approach against different species of Anopheles. Knowledge of traditional repellent plants is a significant resource for the development of new natural products as an alternative to chemical repellents. Many studies have reported evidence of repellant activities of plant extracts against malaria vectors worldwide. This work aimed to access the mosquitorepellent activity of the leaf extracts of Cymbopogon citratus and Eucalyptus globulus against anopheles species. The mosquitos larvae were reared to adult. The leaves collected were washed with water and dried under shade at room temperature for 5-7 days and were powdered using mortar and pestle. The leaves extracts were formed using Dreyer and Kragl, 2008 method, the five extracts obtained ware assessed using human-bait techniques.The result shows Cymbopogon citratus different extracts shows certain level of repellency with chloroform fraction showing the highest degree of repellency of 73.7% (at 12.5% concentration) and 89.5% (at 25% concentration) and the petroleum ether fraction showed the least degree of repellency of 15.4% (at 12.5% concentration) and 30.8% (at 25% concentration), while other extracts have also shown some degree of repellency ranging from 25% to 70.5%.Eucalyptus globulus different extracts show certain level of repellency with ethanol fraction showing the highest degree of repellency of 71.1% (at 12.5% concentration) and 92.9% (at 25% concentration) and ethyl acetate fraction showed the least degree of repellency of 21.4% (at 12.5% concentration) and 35.7% (at 25% concentration), while other extracts have also shown some degree of repellency ranging from 22.2% to 81.8%.Plant oils may serve as suitable alternatives to synthetic repellents in the future as they are relatively safe, inexpensive, and are readily available in many parts of the world.