Household ovicidal alternative for complementary control of Aedes aegypti in the Gran San Miguel de Tucuman agglomerate, Tucumán, Argentina

Abstract

Aedes aegypti is closely related to human behavior that allows its establishment through the accumulation of urban solid waste where it lays resistant eggs. Generally, adulticides and larvicides are applied in excess, without ovicidal alternatives, and some household products can help reduce the abundance of quiescent eggs in breeding sites by affecting the viability of eggs. A community involved in prevention and control is one of the most effective strategies for adequate vector management. In this investigation, new alternative strategies for the control of Ae. aegypti are assessed, valuing in laboratory the eggs' response to diverse household products. Susceptibility to different doses of bleach, oil, salt, sodium bicarbonate, vinegar, coffee, garlic, peroxide, and alcohol was measured, as well as its duration over time. New home products were found as alternative ovicidal method. Bleach and sunflower oil had an ovicidal effect at their maximum doses and at almost all of the evaluation times. In contrast, vinegar and coffee had no ovicidal effect at any time, turning out to be stimulators of hatching in the laboratory. These alternative and complementary applications could optimize the surveillance and control of Ae. aegypti in the area, allowing new approaches to reduce populations by eliminating eggs on human microhabitats.

Keywords: Arboviruses; Argentine Northwest; Community participation; Dengue; Ovicidal control; Yungas; tropical diseases.